MECHANICAL-BEHAVIOR OF BUTYL ADHESIVES

Butyl adhesives are widely used to bond elastomeric membranes. The res ults of uniaxial tension tests and simple shear tests conducted on bul k samples of butyl adhesives are presented in this paper. Butyl adhesi ves were found to have a rate-sensitive mechanical response with very low tensile and shear strengths. The stress-strain curves of the adhes ive are characterized by an initial elastic response followed by a reg ion of large plastic flow. A three-element viscoelastic model was used to model the stress-strain behavior of the adhesive. The model effect ively combines a viscous dashpot and a network spring to capture the p lastic flow in the material after the initial yield. The parameters of the model are calibrated to simulate a wide range of mechanical respo nse of the adhesive.