An investigation into the joint performance of interference fit rivets and failure analysis of aircraft fuselage skin in aerospace applications

Glass laminate aluminum reinforced epoxy (GLARE) composites are widely used in the aerospace industry for manufacturing aircraft components such as fuselages, movable wings, and rudders. These composites are typically joined using adhesives or mechanical fasteners such as rivets and bolts. However, predicting the failure behavior of these joints under various loading conditions is complex due to the combined loading conditions and residual stress effects. The fuselage skin, for example, experiences significant tensile stresses and pull-out forces due to the pressure difference between the cabin and atmospheric pressure. The failure of these joints is often due to the detachment of the rivet from the composite hole under high tensile and accidental impact loading. Therefore, it is very much important to maintain the proper joint performance under all kinds of service loading. In this study, we numerically analyzed interference fit joints in GLARE composites and found that interference fit can significantly improve the tensile and impact behavior of GLARE composite riveted joints under complex loading conditions. Additionally, we fabricated GLARE sandwich composite laminates with different stacking orders and volume fractions and performed mechanical characterization and composite failure analysis under different loading conditions. Our results revealed the tensile strength, Mode-I fracture toughness, Mode-II fracture toughness, flexural strength, and impact strength of GLARE composites with and without joints. These findings provide valuable insights into the design and optimization of joints and composite materials for aerospace applications.