Clinching of Carbon Fiber-Reinforced Composite and Aluminum Alloy

Abstract

The extensive use of carbon fiber-reinforced composites and aluminum alloys represents the highest level of automotive body-in-white lightweighting. The effective and secure joining of these heterogeneous materials remains a prominent and actively researched topic within the scientific community. Among various joining techniques, clinching has emerged as a particularly cost-effective solution, experiencing significant advancements. However, the application of clinching is severely limited by the properties of the joining materials. In this work, various clinching processes for the joining of composites and aluminum alloys reported in recent research are described in detail according to three broad categories based on the principle of technological improvement. By scrutinizing current clinching technologies, a forward-looking perspective is presented for the future evolution of clinching technology in terms of composite–aluminum joints, encompassing aspects of tool design, process analysis, and the enhancement of joint quality. This work provides an overview of current research on clinching of CFRP and aluminum and serves as a reference for the further development of clinching processes.

Keywords

• clinching
• lightweighting
• multi-material design
• composite joining
• process optimization