Study on the low-velocity impact response of the repaired carbon fiber-reinforced plastic laminates: Bonded versus scarf repair

Experimental and simulation studies of the response of bonded-repaired and scarf-repaired carbon fiber-reinforced polymer laminates under the low-velocity impact (LVI) were carried out. The center- and eccentric-repaired laminates were prepared for experiments. The experimental results verify the validity of the finite element model in terms of the force response and different modes of damage. The effect of impact energy and the variation of repair position on the impact response of the laminate was investigated based on the benchmark model. The bonded repaired laminates have higher peak impact forces and lower energy absorption than the scarf-repaired laminates; the damage of the bonded repaired laminate is mainly intralaminar damage and delamination damage of the patch; the adhesive of the scarf repair is prone to failure, leading to poor impact resistance. The relative positions of the impact point and the patch determine the impact response of a laminate repaired at different locations. The impact point at the edge of the patch has a detrimental effect on the repaired laminate. The impact point vertical position near the bottom hole edge of the parent plate in the scarf-repaired case harms the impact resistance of the laminate.Highlights The low-velocity impact response of bonded versus scarf-repaired laminates was compared. Bonding repairs provide superior impact resistance to damaged laminates than scarf repairs. The risk of adhesive failure in scarf repair is significantly higher than in bonded repair. The relative position of the damage (repair) to the impact point critically influences the impact response. Impacts near the edge of the initial damage hole can cause severe damage to scarf-repaired laminates.