Assessment of surface treatment methods for strengthening the interfacial adhesion in CARALL fiber metal laminates.

Metal and polymer interface bonding significantly influences the mechanical performance of fiber metal laminates (FMLs). Therefore, the effect of surface treatments (mechanical abrasion, nitric acid etching, P2 etching, sulfuric acid anodizing (SAA), and electric discharge machine (EDM) texturing) carried on aluminum 2024-T3 alloy sheets was evaluated considering surface morphology, surface topography, and surface roughness. Further, the influence of surface treatments on interfacial adhesion strength and failure mode between the aluminum alloy and carbon fiber prepreg was investigated.