Vehicle manufacturers are improving fuel economy while reducing emissions by lightening the overall weight through material replacement. Using thermoplastics and adhesives instead of traditional screws and metals create less weight.
While thermoplastics offer multiple benefits, they can be challenging when bonding with adhesive during assembly due to low surface energy.
Pretreating surfaces before assembling with ultraviolet (UV) light and plasma can increase a substrate’s surface energy and create a stronger, longer-lasting adhesive bond. Finding the right pretreatment and adhesive that has the necessary properties needed while also being able to be adhered to various plastic substrates is a challenge.
