Experimental and Numerical Assessment of Flatwise Compression Behaviors of Sandwich Panels: Comparison Between Aluminum, Innegra Fiber and Glass/Epoxy New Symmetric Lattice Cores

Abstract

The sandwich panels are widely used in many industrial applications due to their high mechanical properties. Their core design is most important parameter in enhancing their mechanical strength. Flexibility in the design of the core structure leads to the achievement of high strength and light structures. In this paper, the results of the optimized geometry in the previous work are used to investigate the capability of the core geometry design with different materials. Therefore, using the different materials, the peak enhancement of strength-to-weight ratio in sandwich panels besides core behavior during pressure testing are investigated. To this end, a new lattice core is brought forth as the first level; then, three types of materials including AL3105, glass, and innegra fiber/epoxy composites are used to fabricate the cores, in order to compare the compressive strength and the peak. The Nano-clay cloisite 20A is also utilized in construction of sandwich panels. The result indicates that the AL3105 lattice core has the highest strength-to-weight ratio, while the innegra fiber composite core has the highest toughness. Applying curve studies and the SEM Fig. 13, it is concluded that the addition of Nano-clay to composites leads to an increase in both of the strain and the core strength. Comparing the results of experimental and finite element modeling (FEM) data (in ABAQUS software) represented that there is a suitable compliance between them. Our results with the positional variation in core design can pave way in designing advanced engineered sandwich structures in aerospace, shipping, automotive industries. Therefore, these structures will have wide applications in the field of light structure, heat and fluid transfer, sound and vibration control.