Thermal Chamber for Adhesives Creep Multi-Station Testing Machine

Abstract

Adhesives have been used in a wide range of industries, due to their good proprieties when compared with traditional joining methods. Therefore, manufacturers and researchers have been making an effort to study these materials and their characteristics. The main goal of the Advance Joining Processes Unit (AJPU) of FEUP/INEGI is to study and evaluate different types of adhesives under different conditions. One equipment available at the AJPU is a creep testing machine with three independent working stations. As the creep tests must be performed under controlled temperature, the implementation of a thermal chamber was required. This paper describes the design of a thermal chamber for the existing creep testing machine. The chamber needs to be capable of operating between -100 and 200 ºC and have a low temperature gradient. The first step was to design a heat insulator for each upper rod of the creep testing machine, in order to limit the temperature at the load cells to service values. Subsequently, the concept of the chamber was developed. The design decisions with influence on the thermal efficiency of the chamber were supported analytically. The structure, insulation, control and automation projects of the chamber are presented in detail.

Keywords

• adhesive performance
• creep testing machine
• thermal chamber
• heat insulator
• creep