Influence of Polymer Coatings on the Mechanical Properties of Steel Samples in Tensile and Bending Tests

An experimental and theoretical study of the effect of polymer coatings on an epoxy-polyester base on the mechanical properties of samples in the form of steel plates has been carried out. It is shown that, despite the fact that the thickness of the coatings is only 100 μm, they have a significant effect on the mechanical properties of plates up to 1,5 mm thick, leading to a decrease in Young's modulus, tensile strength and ultimate deformations of the samples. It was shown that the elastic modulus of the coated plate cannot be determined unambiguously from tests for central tension and three-point bending. In bending tests, there is a more significant reduction in plate stiffness compared to tensile tests. This effect is confirmed by calculations within the framework of classical models of the theory of elasticity.


Experimental techniques
The tests were carried out on specimens in the form of plates 120 mm long, 12 mm wide and 0,7 mm and 1,5 mm thick.. The material of the plates (substrates) is rolled sheet steel of grade 08PS (unalloyed structural steel with a low carbon content). On the surface of the plates, a powder coating on an epoxy-polyester base of the EUROPOLVERI brand (Italy) was applied by electrostatic method. Before applying coatings, preliminary preparation of the steel surface was carried out: degreasing and then phosphating. The coating thickness was 100 μm with a scatter of ± 30 μm. Coating was carried out in a Gema paint booth (Switzerland). Two batches of ten samples were made for tensile and flexural tests. Samples in different batches differed in the thickness of the steel substrate. Mechanical tests were carried out at room temperature on an Instron 5980 device (UK) with Bluehill 3 software. A contact extensometer with a base of 25 mm was used to measure tensile deformations of the samples. The length of the working part of the sample was 80 mm. Tensile tests were carried out at a speed of 1 mm / min at the linear stage of sample deformation and at a speed of 2 mm / min after removing the extensometer at the stage of plastic deformation and fracture. The tensile tests were used to determine the elastic modulus and ultimate strength of the samples. In the three-point bending test, the support spacing was 80 mm. To accurately measure the displacements of the plate, a contact extensometer with a base of 25 mm was used, which was attached to a deflectometer installed in the center under the sample. Bending tests were carried out up to the maximum value of displacement of the sample center point -1,2 mm. The flexural modulus of the plates E was determined as a result of the flexural tests. The calculation formula in the Bluehill 3 software corresponds to the standard expression for three-point bending: whereLdistance between supports, Factive force, bandhsample width and thickness, wmoving sample midpoint.
The program automatically selected the most typical interval on the stress-strain diagram to determine the elastic modulus of the samples. Figures 1 and 2 show the obtained strain-stress diagrams in bending tests for the test specimens without epoxy coatings ( Fig. 1) and with coatings ( Fig. 2). A summary of the test results is presented in the table1. The graphs along the X axis show the deformation values on the lower surface of the samples (these are tensile deformations in bending), calculated from the known displacement values in the middle of the samples under the action of a load:

Flexural test results
To plot the diagram, the stresses were determined automatically by the formula: Bending tests were carried out within the elastic deformation zone of the samples. The value of the modulus of elasticity was determined automatically, while the angle of inclination of the diagram used in the calculations in the figures is shown by thin straight lines of the corresponding color. The diagrams contain a characteristic horizontal part of the graphs at the beginning of the test, which arises due to the presence of gaps between the sample lying on the supports and the deflectometer installed under the sample. For thin samples, "noises" appear on the diagrams, which are associated with insufficient accuracy of the used setup. However, judging by the scatter of the obtained experimental values (less than 15%), all test results can be considered reliable, with the exception of 0,7 mm thick samples with coatings, for which a scatter of 23% was obtained. Experimenting with such thin coated samples requires additional verification on a facility with a higher precision in voltage measurement.

Analysis of experimental data
A typical form of stress-strain diagrams for tensile and bending tests of specimens with a thickness of 1,5 mm and 0,7 mm with coatings is shown in Figure 5. Figures 5c and 5d show a stress-strain diagram on the surface of the specimen, which is subjected to tensile bending. The test results are presented in table 3. It was found that the elastic modulus of coated plates in tension and bending is lower than the standard Young's modulus of the steel grade used (190 GPa). At the same time, in bending tests, the value of the identified elastic modulus of all samples turned out to be lower compared to the value obtained in tensile tests. Also, the value of the elastic modulus of a coated sample depends on the thickness of the steel substrate -thin samples have a lower elastic modulus. The tensile strength of both batches of samples also decreases and amounts to 336 MPa and 236 MPa (Fig. 5a, 5b), compared with the typical characteristic of the steel used -350 MPa. Ultimate deformations of specimens in tensile tests are reduced by more than three times. The listed effects can be explained by the influence of polymer coatings. For thin specimens, a significant scatter of values was obtained, especially when determining the elastic modulus in bending tests (22%), which is associated with insufficient sensitivity of the equipment used (see Fig.5c). The presence of an initial flat, almost horizontal section in the diagram shown in Fig. 5c, due to the fact that there is a small gap between the deflectometer and the sample lying on the supports before testing, which is difficult to eliminate manually if the samples are thin and pliable. The presence of a small jump in deformations in the zone of transition from the linear to the plastic part of the diagram in Figures 5a and 5b is due to the fact that at these points the extensometer was removed from the sample and further measurement of deformations was carried out according to the displacements of the traverse.

Conclusion
The paper reports the problem of changing the mechanical properties of steel plates, on the surface of which protective epoxy coatings are applied. Providing protection against corrosion, polymer coatings lead to a decrease in mechanical samples. The modulus of elasticity of plates with a thickness of 1,5 mm with a thickness of 100 microns can decrease by more than 10% in tensile tests and by more than 20% in bending tests. The elastic moduli of 0,7 mm thick plates are reduced by more than 20% and 40%, respectively, in tensile and bending tests. The tensile strength and ultimate deformations of coated samples also decrease. The ambiguity of the determined experimental values of the elastic modulus of plates with coatings follows directly from calculations within the framework of classical models of the theory of elasticity.