A feasibility study into joining of engineering thermoplastics utilising concentrated beam solar radiation

Abstract

Most manufacturing technologies and facilities today are being developed for efficient
and environment-friendly production. However, regardless of what type of material
processing technology we use, we need energy. Solar energy, although often called
alternative or even new energy source, is probably the oldest energy source available on
earth. In this paper, the attempts made by the authors to explore the feasibility of utilising
concentrated solar beam radiation for joining engineering thermoplastics such as
acrylonitrile/butadiene/styrene (ABS), polycarbonate (PC) and polymethylmethacrylate
(PMMA) are presented. In addition, to study the joining of the materials, necessary
experimentation with applying primer was performed. Tensile tests were conducted to
determine the bond strength achieved at the specimen joint interface. Microscopic
examinations of the fractured joints were performed in order to analyse the overall bond
quality. Finally, the results in terms of bond strength achieved at the joint interface andenergy consumed in the process were compared with those obtained with similar
thermoplastic joining technique utilising microwave energy. In conclusion, some advantagesand limitations were outlined and necessary improvements of the joiningtechnique wererecommended.