The load-deflection behavior of a US Army Corps of Engineers available sandwich plates in three-point bending with glass phenolic facings and balsa wood core is being investigated under room and elevated temperatures. Test data on bending rigidity, critical interfacial failure (skin-to-core interface) and shear stress are collected and analyzed. The load-deflection curves plots up to the point of failure initiation are being studied. The effects of the span and the radius of the loading nose on the bending modulus and strength are examined systematically. Theoretical calculations from a modified beam theory of sandwich structure are applied and the effect of the shearing rigidity of the core is studied, and the propensity with respect to the span is also investigated. A finite element model is developed to study the flexural and stress analysis. Based on the results, this thesis proposes a desirable analytical approach that correlates theory with experiment as defined below.

Sandwich composites with polymer foam core are currently used in load-bearing components in buildings and naval structures due to their high strength to weight and stiffness to weight ratios, excellent thermal insulation, and ease of manufacturing. During their service time, sandwich composites are exposed to various external mechanical and hygro-thermal stimuli. It is known that the constituent properties of the sandwich composites are greatly influenced by the temperature and moisture fields. For example extreme temperature changes and humid environmental conditions can significantly degrade the stiffness and strength of the polymer foam core. This study analyzes the effect of moisture diffusion on the deformation of viscoelastic sandwich composites, which are composed of orthotropic fiber-reinforced laminated skins and viscoelastic polymeric foam core. It is assumed that the elastic and time-dependent (transient) moduli at any particular location in the foam core depend on the moisture concentration at that location. Sequentially coupled analyses of moisture diffusion and deformation are performed to predict overall performance of the studied viscoelastic sandwich systems. A time and moisture dependent constitutive model is used for the polymer foam core. A time-integration algorithm is developed to link this constitutive model to finite element (FE) analyses framework. The overall time-dependent responses of the sandwich composites subject to moisture diffusion are analyzed using 2D plane strain and 3D continuum elements. A 23% increase in the transverse deformation of the viscoelastic sandwich beam is observed due to the moisture degradation. Experimental data and analytical models available in the literature are used to verify the results obtained from the FE code. Parametric studies on the effects of different diffusivity ratios of skin and core materials on stress, strain and displacement fields have been analyzed. At the initial times the effect of moisture on the field variables is found to be most pronounced in the case with the highest diffusivity ratio. Contributions of moisture dependent elastic and the time-dependent moduli to the overall stress, strain and displacement field have been studied. The structural analysis of the sandwich composite under combined moisture diffusion and mechanical loading for two kinds of problems using FE method is performed to complete the study.

Sandwich composites with polymer foam core are currently used in load-bearing components in buildings and naval structures due to their high strength to weight and stiffness to weight ratios, excellent thermal insulation, and ease of manufacturing. During their service time, sandwich composites are exposed to various external mechanical and hygro-thermal stimuli. It is known that the constituent properties of the sandwich composites are greatly influenced by the temperature and moisture fields. For example extreme temperature changes and humid environmental conditions can significantly degrade the stiffness and strength of the polymer foam core. This study analyzes the effect of moisture diffusion on the deformation of viscoelastic sandwich composites, which are composed of orthotropic fiber-reinforced laminated skins and viscoelastic polymeric foam core. It is assumed that the elastic and time-dependent (transient) moduli at any particular location in the foam core depend on the moisture concentration at that location. Sequentially coupled analyses of moisture diffusion and deformation are performed to predict overall performance of the studied viscoelastic sandwich systems. A time and moisture dependent constitutive model is used for the polymer foam core. A time-integration algorithm is developed to link this constitutive model to finite element (FE) analyses framework. The overall time-dependent responses of the sandwich composites subject to moisture diffusion are analyzed using 2D plane strain and 3D continuum elements. A 23% increase in the transverse deformation of the viscoelastic sandwich beam is observed due to the moisture degradation. Experimental data and analytical models available in the literature are used to verify the results obtained from the FE code. Parametric studies on the effects of different diffusivity ratios of skin and core materials on stress, strain and displacement fields have been analyzed. At the initial times the effect of moisture on the field variables is found to be most pronounced in the case with the highest diffusivity ratio. Contributions of moisture dependent elastic and the time-dependent moduli to the overall stress, strain and displacement field have been studied. The structural analysis of the sandwich composite under combined moisture diffusion and mechanical loading for two kinds of problems using FE method is performed to complete the study.

An experimental investigation was undertaken to analyze the behavior of sandwich composite structures exposed to one-sided heating where a debond exists between the unexposed facesheet and core material. Sandwich composites of plain weave E-glass/epoxy facesheets and an end-grain balsa wood core manufactured using the Vacuum Assisted Resin Transfer Molding (VARTM) technique were the only materials analyzed. These were selected due to their current use in naval vessels and the heightened interest in the fire response properties of balsa wood and its utility as a core material. In order to better understand the interfacial behavior, Mode I Double Cantilever Beam (DCB) fracture tests were performed at ambient, 60 C, and 80 C to determine the influence of the decreased Mode I fracture toughness. While ambient testing showed that stable crack growth could be obtained, high temperature tests resulted in considerable damage occurring to the core at the crack-front preventing stable crack growth. This can be attributed to the significant decrease in the balsa core strength and material properties even for small increases in temperature. Additionally, Mode II Cracked Split Beam (CSB) tests were performed at ambient temperature to examine the sliding dominant crack-growth. Again, the occurrence of balsa core damage prevented stable crack-growth and an accurate measurement of Mode II fracture toughness was not obtained. Intermediate-scale compression testing with one-sided heating at two heat flux levels was performed with a custom designed load frame on sandwich composite columns. This enabled the influence of the debond to be measured using a 3D-Digital Image Correlation (DIC) technique spatially linked with a thermographic camera. The DIC allowed for a detailed observation of debond growth and buckling prior to global failure of the test article. A behavior similar to that observed in the Mode I DCB fracture tests occurred: as the interfacial temperature increased, the amount of crack growth decreased. This crack growth was followed by a core failure at the crack-front, triggering a global failure of the test article. This global failure for test articles containing a debond manifested itself primarily as an anti-symmetric post-buckling shape. Test articles with no debond exhibited the typical progression of the out-of-plane displacement profile for a fixed-fixed column. As the out-of-plane displacement increased, core failure ultimately occurred near the gripped region where the zero-slope condition is required, triggering global failure of the no debond test article. These tests highlight that the reduction in strength and material properties of the end-grain balsa wood core significantly outweigh the reduction in interfacial fracture toughness due to the increased temperatures. / Master of Science

L'objectif de cette thèse est de développer des modèles d'homogénéisation analytiques de panneaux sandwichs en nid d'abeilles. A la différence des méthodes classiques, l'effet des peaux est pris en compte, conduisant à des propriétés mécaniques très différentes. Dans les cas des tractions, flexions, cisaillement dans le plan, cisaillements transversaux et torsion, différentes séries de fonctions analytiques sont proposées pour prendre en compte la redistribution des contraintes entre les parois du nid d'abeilles. Nous avons étudié l'influence de la hauteur du nid d'abeilles sur les propriétés élastiques. Les courbes des modules obtenues avec le modèle proposé sont bien bornées par les valeurs obtenues avec la théorie des poutres. Les contraintes d'interface sont également étudiées afin de comparer avec les modèles existant pour le problème de traction. De nombreux calculs numériques ont été réalisés avec nos H-modèles pour les problèmes de tractions, de flexions, de traction-flexion couplés, de cisaillement dans le plan, de cisaillement transversal et de torsion. De très bon accords ont été obtenus entre les résultats issus des H-modèles et ceux issus des calculs en éléments finis de coques en maillant complètement les panneaux sandwichs. Nos H-modèles ont été appliquées aux calculs de grandes plaques sandwichs industrielles en nid d'abeilles. La comparaison desrésultats entre les H-modèles et les calculs en éléments finis de coques du logiciel Abaqus sont en très bon accord. / The aim of this thesis is to develop an analytical homogenization model for the honeycomb core sandwich panels. Unlike conventional methods, the skin effects are taken into account, leading to a very different mechanical properties. In the cases of extensions, bendings, in-plane shear, transverse shears andtorsion, different analytical function series are proposed to consider the stress redistribution between the honeycomb walls. We have studied the influence of the height of the core on its homogenized properties. The moduli curves obtained by the present H-models are well bounded by the moduli values obtained by the beam theory. The interface stresses are also studied to compare with existing models for stretching problem. Many numerical computations with our H-models have been done for the problems of stretching, bending, in-plan and transverse shearing, as well as torsion. Very good agreement has been achieved between the results of the H-models and the results obtained by finite element simulations by completely meshing thesandwich panel with shell elements. Our H-models have been applied to the computations of industrial large sandwich panels with honeycomb core. The comparison of the results between the H-models and the simulations with Abaqus shell elements are in very good agreement.

Composite sandwich structures are prevalent in engineering applications where high strength to weight ratios are critical. A composite sandwich includes the addition of a core material between two composite face sheets to increase ultimate stress in compression and bending loading cases. The performance of many composite sandwich structure configurations is well understood in the undamaged case. This analysis examines a type of damage, low velocity indentation, and determines the effect on mechanical behavior. The scope of the analysis includes manufacturing sandwich composite structures, creating indentation in the composite, and testing the sandwich composite structure. The mechanical behavior of the composite sandwich structures is characterized through ASTM C364 test standard for compressive strength and ASTM C393 standard test standard for flexural properties of sandwich constructions. The experiment is conducted with varied indentation depth, core materials, composite sandwich thickness, and composite face sheet thickness. The findings are compared to control specimens and used to determine the effect of indentation depth and create a relationship for the mechanical performance of indented sandwich composites.

Favorable properties of Balsa wood make it an interesting alternative in a number of applications including thermal insulation or as a lightweight core material in sandwich composites. Increasing use in construction necessitates a better understanding of its mechanical and failure properties. In the present work, mode I and mode II fracture toughness for different types of balsa wood and a sandwich structure (balsa as core and fiber glass as skin layer) are studied experimentally by using load-displacement diagrams and visually acquired crack growth data. / Graduation date: 2013

No description available.