Abstract: In recent years, composite material bonding repair technology has been widely used in damaged metallic structures, but the traditional patch curing process has problems like high cost, high energy consumption and long molding time. In response to this problem, this paper proposes to integrate the carbon nanotube film (CNTF) as a heating element with the composite prepreg patch, and achieve the purpose of repairing the damaged structure through electric heating and curing. Experimental studies have been conducted by using CNTF electric heating and traditional oven heating methods to cure the composite patches to repair cracked aluminum alloy plates. The energy consumption and curing time required under different methods have been compared, and tests have been conducted to evaluate the mechanical performance of the repaired structures. The results have demonstrated that the CNTF electric heating and curing technology is an energy-saving and energy-efficient method, which can significantly reduce energy consumption and material forming time. Meanwhile, the bearing capacity of the test specimens repaired by CNTF electric heating is similar to that of the test specimens repaired by oven heating, providing a new way for bonding repair of metallic structures with low energy consumption and low cost.

Key words: carbon nanotube films, electrical heating and curing, composite bonding repair, damaged metallic structure, repaired mechanical performance