Click Bond Nutplate/Hysol 9309.

03
Installation and Removal Procedure

GLAS-544-PROC-020
April 20, 2000

Released by GLAS CMO

(GSFC) 12/09/2002 (LAL)

Prepared by
National Aeronautics and Space Administration
Goddard Space Flight Center
Greenbelt MD 20771

CHECK THE CoMITS DATABASE AT

http://instra1.gsfc.nasa.gov:9001/comits/query/docs TO VERIFY THAT THIS IS THE CORRECT VERSION PRIOR TO USE.
 GLAS-544-PROC-020

Click Bond Nutplate/Hysol 9309.03

Installation and Removal Procedure

Prepared by: Rene Carlos/543 10/23/2000

__________________________________________________________________
Rene Carlos (543) Date

Reviewed by: Cheryl Salemo/544 10/16/2000

__________________________________________________________________
Cheryl Salerno (544) Date

Gordon Casto/543 11/15/2002

Approved by: __________________________________________________________________
Gordon Casto (543) Date
 GLAS-544-PROC-020

Geoscience Laser Altimeter System (GLAS) CM Plan

Document Change Record

Revision Description of Change Pages Date Approval

Affected
- Baseline Release of Document 4/20/00 GC
 GLAS-544-PROC-020

1.0 Introduction

This plan documents the installation, test, and removal of Click Bond brand nutplates. These lugged plates are for
secondary bonding of components to the GLAS (Geoscience Laser Altimeter System) instrument structure.

The plan is similar to the enclosed SMEX document, SSPP-PROC-105. One revision is the change to Hysol
9309.03 adhesive instead of 9309. This has no effect on the procedures, handling, and safety precautions already
present.
 CLICK BOND NUTPLATE/HYSOL
9309 INSTALLATION AND
REMOVAL PROCEDURE

SSPP-PROC-105
BASELINE REVISION

APRIL 1997

Goddard Space Flight Center

Greenbelt, Maryland

Prepared By:
 REVISION LOG

REV DESCRIPTION INITIATED BY APPROVAL

1.0 SCOPE
The purpose of this procedure is to provide the necessary instructions for bonding or removing
Click Bond nutplates (series CB6009, CB6014, CB8009, and any equivalents) to or from
aluminum and stainless steel hardware. The nutplates are bonded to the hardware using a Hysol
EA9309 epoxy. For purposes of this procedure it is assumed that the Hysol 9309 epoxy will
only be used with nutplates incorporating 160ksi nuts. The Proof Torque values in Section 6.0
reflect the higher values in comparison to those previously used with the Hysol 9394 epoxy (see
SSPP-PROC-036). If lower strength nuts (125ksi) are being used with the Hysol 9309 the Proof
Torque values must be adjusted accordingly. The epoxy may be either mixed by hand or
purchased premixed and frozen. Instructions for application of the epoxy in either case are
provided in this procedure.

Prior to the creation of this procedure a series of tests were conducted with the CB6009 nutplates
bonded to various materials with varying surface finishes (see SSPP-PROC-035). Experience
gained from these tests provided a number of important lessons about adhesively attached
fasteners.

• The bonding strength of the epoxy is directly related to the cleanliness of the contact surfaces
at the nutplate to hardware interface. Therefore, a detailed surface preparation and cleaning
procedure for the hardware contact surface must be followed to assure consistent, high
strength epoxy bonds.

• It is recommended that, before bonding nutplates to flight hardware for the first time a
minimum of three (3) nutplates out of the purchased lot be bonded to test plates. If possible,
the test plates should have similar surface properties (surface finish and preparation (iridite,
anodize, etc.)) as the flight hardware and should be torque out tested to assure adequate
bonding strength. These practice installations provide the installer a chance to get a feel for
the amount of adhesive required on the nutplate and the amount of force required to squeeze
out a full bondline around the nutplate. If the installation personnel have previously installed
similar types of adhesively bonded nutplates, the test plates do not need to be made.

• If too much force is applied to the elastomeric fixture the adhesive will pass through the
clearance hole and bond to the nutplate. The amount of force required is not a quantifiable
value and is a learned skill. This is where the experience gained from the creation of a couple
of test plates is very useful. If adhesive continues to pass through the clearance hole after
numerous installation attempts with decreasing force applied to the fixture, call the
manufacturer and make sure that the proper elastomeric pressure application fixture has been
provided with the nutplates. This was a problem experienced during the initial testing
performed using SSPP-PROC-035.
2.0 REQUIRED TOOLS AND MATERIALS

CB6009 or Equivalent Click Bond Nutplate

Needle Nose Pliers
Acetone (ACS Grade recommended but not required)
Ethyl Alcohol
Scotch Brite
Hysol EA9309 A/B Epoxy (either in separate parts to be mixed or pre-mixed frozen)
Non-metallic Stirring Rods (Polypropylene recommended but not required)
Pipette Syringe
Aluminum Mixing Dish (Fisher Scientific # 08-732 series recommended but not required)
Rubber Gloves
Polyethylene Gloves
Lint Free Wipes (Acetone soaked and vacuum extracted recommended but not required)
Dental Pick
Rubber Maskant
Non-metallic Scraper
Fine Grit Sandpaper

3.0 NUTPLATE AND HARDWARE SURFACE PREPARATION FOR

BONDING

** WARNING ** To maintain clean bonding surfaces, rubber gloves

must be worn while performing all steps of Section 3,
4, and 5. Any steps involving solvents (Acetone
and Ethyl Alcohol) require polyethylene gloves over
the rubber gloves.

a. Remove the floating nut with the elastomeric pressure application fixture from the
nutplates by removing the nut clip with a pair of needle nose pliers (See Appendix A for
detailed specifications and drawings of the Series CB6009 Click Bond nutplates). Wipe
the bonding surface of the nutplate using Acetone. Allow one minute for the solvent to
flash off before proceeding. Reclean the surface with Ethyl Alcohol. Allow one minute
for the solvent to flash off before proceeding. Replace the nut clip and the floating nut
with the elastomeric pressure application fixture into the nutplate. If more than three
hours pass after cleaning and before adhesive application, the surface shall be recleaned
with Ethyl Alcohol.

b. Using Scotch Brite, abrade the mounting location for the nutplate on the hardware
(primed surfaces and cast aluminum surfaces do not require abrading). Thoroughly clean
the mounting surface with Acetone. Allow one minute for the solvent to flash off before
proceeding. Reclean the surface with Ethyl Alcohol. Allow one minute for the solvent to
 flash off before proceeding. If more than three hours pass after cleaning and before
adhesive nutplate installation, the surfaces shall be recleaned with Ethyl Alcohol.

4.0 EA9309 EPOXY PREPARATION

4.1 MIXING EA9309 EPOXY

a. A mix record (see Appendix A for attached copy) for the epoxy on all flight
hardware applications must be completed.

b. All work recorded on the mix record shall be performed by personnel certified in
accordance with the requirements called out in NHB 5300.4(J3).

c. Using a gram scale (with an accuracy of ± 1% ) weigh out in a mixing dish the
proper amount of adhesive (part A) and curing agent (part B) to create a mixing
ratio of 100 (part A) to 23 (part B) by weight.

**WARNING** Do not mix quantities greater than 450 grams as dangerous heat
buildup can occur causing uncontrolled decomposition of the mixed adhesive.
TOXIC FUMES CAN OCCUR, RESULTING IN PERSONAL INJURY.

d. Both components should have an even consistency and be free of striations and
lumps. Thoroughly mix the two parts together until a consistent light orange color
is achieved. Some amount of heat buildup during or after mixing is normal.

e. Deaerate the mixture in a vacuum chamber/bell jar for a minimum of 1 minute to

ten millimeters of mercury or lower until free of all entrapped air bubbles.

f. Place mixed epoxy into an appropriate sized pipette syringe for easy dispensing.

g. The Hysol EA9309 epoxy has a pot life of 40 minutes and should not be used
after this amount of time.

4.2 PRE-MIXED AND FROZEN EA9309 EPOXY

a. Mix records are not required when using the pre-mixed and frozen EA9309
epoxy.

b. Remove the frozen EA9309 epoxy syringe from the freezer or dewar.

c. Allow the syringe to thaw until moisture no longer condenses on the syringe. This
should occur in 5 to 8 minutes. Make sure that all water condensation is removed
from the syringe before the epoxy is applied.

d.
d. Reserve at least 2 to 3 cc’s of epoxy from each mixed or thawed batch for a hardness test
sample. Squeeze out this final amount into a clean mixing dish and allow to cure for five
days. The test sample should be at a minimum, approximately 1 inch in diameter and 1/8
inch thick. Each sample is to be hardness tested to the Shore D scale. The tested value
should be 80 (±5) Shore D units.

6.0 FIXTURE REMOVAL, INSPECTION AND TORQUE PROOF TEST

6.1 Fixture Removal

After cure, remove the elastomeric pressure fixture by pulling it through and out of the
nutplate.

6.2 Inspection

Check the motion of the floating nut to make sure that no adhesive has passed through the
clearance hole. If a small amount of adhesive has passed through attempt to remove it
with a dental pick. If adhesive has bonded to the threads of the floating nut it may have
to be replaced. The Lead Mechanical Engineer must assess any nutplates that have
adhesive on the floating nuts and determine if it is acceptable.

6.3 Torque Proof Test

To assure that a strong bondline has been achieved, each nutplate should be Torque Proof
tested. Using a fastener of the appropriate strength (160 ksi or greater), size, and length,
torque the nutplate to the applicable value shown below.

Thread Size Proof Torque (in-lb)

.112-40 (#4-40) 20
.138-32 (#6-32) 30
.164-32 (#8-32) 45
.190-32 (#10-32) 60
.250-28 (1/4-28) 130
.312-24 (5/16-24) 200
.375-24 (3/8-24) 430
.500-20 (1/2-20) 1030

Proof Torque for Hysol 9309 and Clickbond Nutplate with 160ksi Nut.
Table 1
 APPENDIX A

• Detailed Click Bond Nutplate Specifications

• Mix Record

• Hysol EA 9309 Specifications

• Material Safety Data Sheet