Development of Eurocode-based design rules for adhesive bonded joints

Despite many advantages, adhesive bonding technology has not been able to establish in construction and specifically steel construction. The reasons for this are doubts by engineers, architects and contractors regarding the verifiability, durability and load bearing capacity of bonded steel constructions. In order to facilitate the use of the innovative bonding technique in construction too, it is necessary to process bonded joints close to standardisation. The general interest of automotive manufacturing, construction, chemistry and other industries and research is highlighted by numerous experimental and analytical studies. The aspect of standardisation is of particular importance to construction engineering. While various guidelines for adhesive bonds exist, these are either not applicable to steel construction or are based on an obsolete concept. Practically relevant design concepts are based on the semi-probabilistic method of the Eurocode. In order to develop such a concept, it is necessary to calibrate analytical models by experimentation. The statistical method aims to determine partial safety and conversion factors. Therefore, a comparison of experimental results with analytical solutions is necessary. In the article, analytical models, experimental studies and statistical calibration methods are introduced.