Investigation on Nonlinear Constitutive Relationship for a Honeycomb Sandwich Composite

Abstract

This paper investigates nonlinear responses of honeycomb sandwich composite under externally applied loads theoretically and experimentally. In the experimental work, honeycomb sandwich composites made of an aluminum honeycomb core and glass fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) laminate surfaces were loaded under in-plane tension and out-of plane bending up to failure. Stress-strain curves or load deflection plot together with elastic moduli and ultimate strengths were obtained. An energy approach was used to establish a nonlinear constitutive relationship for the honeycomb sandwich composites. Making use of the superimposition ability of the strain energies of all of the walls of the RVE, a nonlinear constitutive relationship for the honeycomb core was obtained. The thus obtained relationship was incorporated with a laminate theory and the bridging model to analyze nonlinear responses of the honeycomb core and FRP surface sandwich composites up to failure. The composite failure was detected micromechanically, i.e., based on the failure status of its constituent aluminum core, reinforcing fiber, polymer matrix, and adhesion layer. Stiffness discount was applied respectively to the failed composing element. The predicted nonlinear stress-strain curves under tension and load-deflection relationship under three-point bending were compared with the experimental measurements. Favorable correlations have been obtained.