Mechanical properties analysis and experimental study of double-lap mechanically connected carbon fiber drive shafts

The application of carbon fiber in the drive shaft received grave concern in vehicle design due to its excellent lightweight and mechanical properties. This paper proposed and introduced a novel double-lap mechanical connection carbon fiber-reinforced plastic (DCCFRP) drive shaft. The optimal adhesive between carbon fiber laminate and metal plate was obtained by tensile experimentation. A finite element model correlated with the physical tensile tests was conducted to assess the optimal number of carbon layers and superior carbon fiber layering. The DCCFRP experimental torsional results were compared with the traditional single-lap carbon fiber-reinforced plastic (TSCFRP) drive shaft to study the mechanical performance of the DCCFRP drive shaft. The results illustrated that the maximum torque of the DCCFRP drive shaft is 71.52% higher than that of the TSCFRP scheme, which has essential guiding for ensuring the torsional resistance and light weight of the drive shaft.