Effect of Surface Treatment on Interface Strength of CFRP/Metal Hybrid Composites

Recently, automobile components such as center pillars and impact beams have been fabricated using materials that satisfy both high strength and impact absorption. In this study, the forming process of CR340 (cold rolled steel)/CFRP hybrid composites was investigated. Initially, hybrid composites were fabricated by stacking carbon fibre reinforced plastic (CFRP) prepreg on CR340 steel with Zn coating. An adhesive agent developed by the research team was applied for bonding between the cold rolled steel and CFRP to enable the blank fabrication of hybrid composites. The mechanical properties of the developed hybrid composites were investigated by tensile, bending and lap shear adhesion test. The results showed that the tensile strength and shear strength of composites increases with the increase in the number of laminations but the bending strength decreases.