The application of limit analysis to the determination of the strength of butt joints
The technique of limit analysis is applied to determine upper and lower bounds for the tensile strength of a butt joint consisting of a thin layer of adhesive joining the parallel flats of two rigid adherends. The adhesive is assumed to be an elasticperfectly plastic material which yields when the maximum shear stress reaches a critical value. The methods used apply to any joint with a convex area of cross-section. Particular application is made to joints whose cross-sections are circular, rectangular, or a polygon circumscribed about a circle.