PSI - Issue 83

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ScienceDirect

Procedia Structural Integrity 83 (2026) 187–195

© 2026 The Authors. Published by ELSEVIER B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0) Peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of the ESIAM26 organizers Keywords: Additive manufacturing; Adhesive bonding; Single-lap joints; Step joints; Cohesive zone modelling. Abstract Additive manufacturing (AM) has become an increasingly attractive production method due to its design flexibility and reduced material waste. Nevertheless, the limited build volume often necessitates the joining of printed components to form larger or more complex structures. In this context, adhesive bonding represents a promising solution, although its mechanical performance remains insufficiently explored. This study presents an experimental and numerical investigation of adhesively bonded joints manufactured from AM thermoplastics, focusing on a direct comparison between conventional single-lap joints (SLJ) and step (SJ) joints. The adherends were produced using Polylactic Acid (PLA), Polyethylene Terephthalate Glycol-modified (PETG), and Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene (ABS) while two structural adhesives, namely Araldite ® 2015 and Sikaforce ® 7752, were employed. Tensile tests were conducted to evaluate joint strength, stiffness, energy dissipation, and failure mechanisms for both joint configurations. The experimental results were complemented by numerical simulations based on a Cohesive Zone Modelling (CZM) framework. The findings indicate that joint configuration has a significant effect on overall performance. The fourth European Conference on the Structural Integrity of Additively Manufactured Materials (ESIAM26) Experimental and cohesive zone evaluation of adhesive joints in 3D-printed structures under tensile loads R.J.B. Rocha a,b , T.F.R. Ribeiro a , R.D.S.G. Campilho a,b *, R.F.R. Pinto c , J.F.B. Martins a , K. Madani d a CIDEM, ISEP – School of Engineering, Polytechnic of Porto, R. Dr. António Bernardino de Almeida, 431, 4200-072 Porto, Portugal b INEGI – Pólo FEUP, Rua Dr. Roberto Frias, 400, 4200-465 Porto, Portugal. c proMetheus, Instituto Politécnico de Viana do С astelo, 4900-347 Viana do Castelo, Portugal. d Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Sidi Bel Abbes, BP 89, Cité Ben M’hidi, 22000, Sidi Bel Abbes, Algeria.

* Corresponding author. Phone:+351939526892; Fax:+351228321159. E-mail address: raulcampilho@gmail.com

2452-3216 © 2026 The Authors. Published by ELSEVIER B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0) Peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of the ESIAM26 organizers 10.1016/j.prostr.2026.07.022