Peel and shear strength of spot-welded and weld-bonded dissimilar thickness joints

The present work aimed at investigating the effect of thickness dissimilarity on the peel and shear strength of spot-welded dissimilar thickness joints. Finite element analysis was used throughout the present work. The present work showed that thickness dissimilarity magnifies the stress concentration located at the boundaries of the weld nugget. The level of stress concentration developed in the thinner part of the joint is higher than that developed in the thicker part. However, the introduction of an adhesive layer in conjunction with the spot weld nugget resulted in improving the peel and shear strength of spot-welded dissimilar thickness joints, through reducing the associated level of stress concentration. (C) 2003 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.