Analysis Of Bending Loads On Bamboo-Balsa And Bamboo-Polypropylene Honeycomb Composite Sandwiches

摘要

This research was done to evaluate the bending behavior (load-deflection curve and failure mode) of sandwich structures using Tali Bamboo strips as sandwich skin material. Bending tests were conducted on sandwich specimens with end grain balsa (3-point bending) and polypropylene (PP) honeycomb cores (4-point bending) to evaluate their bending behavior. From the test results, analytical and numerical models were developed to simulate the observed bending behavior. The models are able to simulate the pre-failure bending behavior and failure modes (core shear failure) of the specimens. It is also shown that for thin (length/thickness > 20) sandwiches the models are more accurate since shear effects are less prominent. With the obtained models a predictive comparison is done between the PP and balsa cored specimens since the testing configuration for each type was different. The analysis results show that balsa cored specimens are able to withstand higher transverse bending loads due to the higher shear strength of the balsa core. These prediction results are to be proven by specimen testing which is the subject of future research.