nCode Updates Methods for Assessing Adhesive Bond Durability

By DE Editors

HBM-nCode will introduce methods for assessing the durability of adhesive bonds in lightweight vehicle structures in version 8 of nCode DesignLife available this month.

According to the company, adhesive bonding is increasingly used in the development of lightweight vehicle bodies. In addition to improving structural rigidity, it provides a means of joining high strength steels, aluminum alloys and dissimilar materials, with good durability against fatigue compared to more traditional methods such as spot-welding and seam-welding.

nCode DesignLife 8 uses a fracture mechanics-based method requiring relatively minor modifications to a typical vehicle body finite element model. The theoretical basis of the method was developed as part of a project conducted by the Volvo Group, and the testing and software implementation was carried out as part of the Bonded Carcollaborative research project, the partners being Jaguar Land Rover, Coventry University, Warwick University, Innoval Technology, Henrob and Stoke Golding Applied Research.

For more information, visit nCode.

Sources: Press materials received from the company and additional information gleaned from the company's website.