Effect of iron oxide and graphene particles on joint strength and dismounting characteristics of a thermoplastic adhesive

A thermoplastic adhesive modified with iron oxide particles (IO) and graphene nanoplatelets (GNPs) has been used to ease the dismounting process of plastic component assemblies by using microwave or induction heating systems. GNPs have been added to an adhesive already modified with iron oxide particles (10% in weight) to melt the adhesive and separate adhesive joints in a more rapid and efficient way compared to the adhesive preliminarily adopted by the same authors. The IO-based thermoplastic adhesive was modified with three different GNP weight concentrations, namely 0.1%, 0.5%, and 1.0%. The mechanical properties have been evaluated through single lap joint (SLJ) tests. These tests showed that the maximum sustained load and the elastic moduli of the joints increase together with the increase of GNP percentages. Microwave or induction heating tests conducted on all the adhesive compositions showed that it is possible to melt the adhesive rapidly and thus separate the plastic joints in a very rapid way, 14 s, and 10 s respectively for the cases that embed 1% of GNPs. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) showed that the extruder can mix uniformly these particles without the formation of agglomerates.