Review of Research on Friction Riveting of Polymer/Metal Light Weight Multi-material Structures

The present transportation industry has been challenged by cost-saving requirements, ever-stronger environmental protection regulations and the significant growth of transport volume. One approach for tackling these challenges is the development of new improved transportation vehicles using new materials and innovative joining technologies. In the recent decade, the use of fiber-reinforced plastics-metal structures has increased significantly in bridge, automotive and aircraft structures, and friction riveting has evolved as a new and promising candidate for joining fiber-reinforced plastics to metals. Friction riveting bridges the gap between mechanical fastening and welding, and offers advantages such as short joining cycle times and a minimum of surface pre-treatment of the joining partners. The present work provides a comprehensive understanding of joining mechanism and behavior of friction riveted multi-material joint structures. Friction riveting has full potential to grow as an ecofriendly, economical and reliable joining method for developing polymer-metal multi-material structures.