Mechanical behavior of carbon fiber reinforced polymer composite sandwich panels with 2-D lattice truss cores

Composite sandwich structures with lattice truss cores are attracting more and more attention due to their superior specific strength/stiffness and multi-functional applications. In the present study, the carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) composite sandwich panels with 2-D lattice truss core are manufactured based on the hot-pressing method using unidirectional carbon/epoxy prepregs. The facesheets are interconnected with lattice truss members by means of that both ends of the lattice truss members are embedded into the facesheets, without the bonding procedure commonly adopted by sandwich panels. The mechanical properties of the 2-D lattice truss sandwich panels are investigated under out-of-plane compression, shear and three-point bending tests. Delamination of the facesheets is observed in shear and bending tests while node failure mode does not occur. The tests demonstrate that delamination of the facesheet is the primary failure mode of this sandwich structure other than the debonding between the facesheets and core for conventional sandwiches.     

The compressive responses of glass fiber composite pyramidal truss cores sandwich panel at different temperatures

A new method for fabricating glass fiber composite sandwich panel with pyramidal truss cores was developed based on the vacuum assisted resin transfer molding technology. The microstructure and organizations of fabricated sandwich panels were examined by the scanning electron microscope. The out-of-plane compressive tests of composite sandwich panels were performed throughout the temperature range from −60 °C to 125 °C. Then the effects of temperature on the compressive strength, compressive modulus and failure mechanism were investigated and analyzed. Our results indicated that cryogenic temperature resulted in the increasing of the compressive modulus and strength, while high temperature caused the degradation of the compressive modulus and strength. The effect of temperature on failure mode of composite sandwich panel was also observed. Analytical expressions were presented to predict the compressive modulus and strength of composite sandwich panels at different temperatures.     

Mechanical behaviour of CFRP sandwich structures with tetrahedral lattice truss cores

A method of manufacturing carbon fibre reinforced polymer (CFRP) tetrahedral lattice truss core sandwich structure by thermal expansion silicon rubber mould was developed. The sandwich structure was manufactured integrally without secondary bonding and the silicon rubber mould can be made mass-production with low cost in this approach. The intrinsic property of the CFRP was fully exploited because of carbon fibres aligned in the axial orientation of the truss member. The mechanical properties of CFRP tetrahedral lattice truss core sandwich structures were investigated by flatwise compression and shear test. The experimental results indicate that CFRP tetrahedral lattice truss core sandwich structures have higher weight-specific compressive strength than some metal truss cores, and are competitive with conventional honeycombs.     

Durability study of pultruded CFRP plates immersed in water and seawater under sustained bending: Water uptake and effects on the mechanical properties

This paper presents the durability behavior of pultruded unidirectional carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) plates immersed in water and seawater at room temperature, under sustained bending strain of 30% and 50% ultimate strain. In this study, water absorption kinetics of CFRP composite and effects of moisture ingress on the mechanical properties, such as tensile properties and short beam shear strength, constitute integral parts of the investigation. The study reveals that seawater immersion leads to higher equilibrium moisture content than water immersion, due to the blister induced damages on the CFRP plate surfaces in seawater. However, diffusion coefficient in seawater immersion is shown to be lower compared to the water immersion, and is attributed to the high concentration of dissolved salts in seawater that retard water diffusion by osmosis. Increasing the bending strain reduces the free volume fraction of the resin matrix, which is responsible for the decreased water uptake and diffusion coefficient for both immersions. Immersion in both media leads to the pronounced degradation in the resin controlled property (i.e., short beam shear strength) of CFRP, but shows less or negligible effects on the fiber controlled properties (i.e., tensile strength and modulus). Both immersion media and 50% bending strain level show remarkable effects on the variation of the mechanical properties of CFRP.     

Theoretical and experimental study of foam-filled lattice composite panels under quasi-static compression loading

In this paper, a simple and innovative foam-filled lattice composite panel is proposed to upgrade the peak load and energy absorption capacity. Unlike other foam core sandwich panels, this kind of panels is manufactured through vacuum assisted resin infusion process rather than adhesive bonding. An experimental study was conducted to validate the effectiveness of this panel for increasing the peak strength. The effects of lattice web thickness, lattice web spacing and foam density on initial stiffness, deformability and energy absorbing capacity were also investigated. Test results show that compared to the foam-core composite panels, a maximum of an approximately 1600% increase in the peak strength can be achieved due to the use of lattice webs. Meanwhile, the energy absorption can be enhanced by increasing lattice web thickness and foam density. Furthermore, by using lattice webs, the specimens had higher initial stiffness. A theoretical model was also developed to predict the ultimate peak strength of panels.     

Mechanical behavior of the sandwich structures with carbon fiber-reinforced pyramidal lattice truss core

Sandwich panel construction with carbon fiber-reinforced pyramidal lattice truss is attracting more and more attention due to its superior mechanical properties and multi-functional applications. Pyramidal lattice truss sandwich panels made from carbon fiber reinforced composites materials are manufactured by hot-pressing. The facesheets are interconnected with truss cores, the facesheets and truss cores are manufactured in one manufacturing process without bonding. The buckling and splitting of truss member is observed in the compressive and shear tests and no nodal failure is observed. The predicted results show that the mechanical behavior of the pyramidal lattice truss core sandwich panels depends on the relative density of core and the material properties of truss members.     

High Velocity Impact Response of Composite Lattice Core Sandwich Structures

In this research, carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) composite sandwich structures with pyramidal lattice core subjected to high velocity impact ranging from 180 to 2,000 m/s have been investigated by experimental and numerical methods. Experiments using a two-stage light gas gun are conducted to investigate the impact process and to validate the finite element (FE) model. The energy absorption efficiency (EAE) in carbon fiber composite sandwich panels is compared with that of 304 stainless-steel and aluminum alloy lattice core sandwich structures. In a specific impact energy range, energy absorption efficiency in carbon fiber composite sandwich panels is higher than that of 304 stainless-steel sandwich panels and aluminum alloy sandwich panels owing to the big density of metal materials. Therefore, in addition to the multi-functional applications, carbon fiber composite sandwich panels have a potential advantage to substitute the metal sandwich panels as high velocity impact resistance structures under a specific impact energy range.     

Evaluation of sandwich panels with various polyurethane foam-cores and ribs

The objective of this study was to evaluate three potential core alternatives for glass fiber reinforced polymer (GFRP) foam-core sandwich panels. The proposed system could reduce the initial production costs and the manufacturing difficulties while improving the system performance. Three different polyurethane foam configurations were considered for the inner core, and the most suitable system was recommended for further prototyping. These configurations consisted of high-density polyurethane foam (Type 1), a bidirectional gridwork of thin, interconnecting, GFRP webs that is in-filled with low-density polyurethane foam (Type 2), and trapezoidal-shaped, low-density polyurethane foam utilizing GFRP web layers (Type 3). The facings of the three cores consisted of three plies of bidirectional E-glass woven fabric within a compatible polyurethane resin. Several types of small-scale experimental investigations were conducted. The results from this study indicated that the Types 1 and 2 cores were very weak and flexible making their implementation in bridge deck panels less practical. The Type 3 core possessed a higher strength and stiffness than the other two types. Therefore, this type is recommended for the proposed sandwich system to serve as a candidate for further development. Additionally, a finite element model (FEM) was developed using software package ABAQUS for the Type 3 system to further investigate its structural behavior. This model was successfully compared to experimental data indicating its suitability for parametric analysis of panels and their design.     

Pyramidal lattice sandwich structures with hollow composite trusses

Pyramidal lattice sandwich structures with hollow composite trusses were fabricated using a thermal expansion molding approach. Composite lattice structures with three relative densities were fabricated with two fiber architectures and the out-of-plane compression properties were measured and compared. Lattice cores with a fraction of carbon fibers circumferentially wound around the hollow trusses (Variant 2) exhibited superior mechanical properties compared with similar structures comprised of unidirectional fibers (Variant 1). The out-of-plane compressive properties of composite pyramidal lattice structures in Variant 2 were well-matched by analytical predictions. Unusual strain hardening behavior was observed in the plateau region for Variant 2, and the energy absorption capabilities were measured and compared with the similarly constructed silicone rubber–core truss pyramidal lattice structures (Variant 3). The energy absorption per unit mass of selected hollow truss composite lattice structures reported here surpassed that of both hybrid truss counterparts (Variant 3) and hollow truss metallic lattice structures.     

CFRP@GFRP混杂复合材料杆体在水浸泡环境下的性能演化

碳纤维增强树脂复合材料(CFRP)@玻璃纤维增强树脂复合材料(GFRP)混杂复合材料杆体发挥碳纤维的高力学、疲劳性能与玻璃纤维的低成本、高变形能力等优势,在桥梁与海洋工程中具有巨大应用潜力,如跨海大桥斜拉索。针对CFRP@GFRP混杂复合材料杆体在服役环境下长期性能演化,本文采用加速试验方法研究蒸馏水环境下CFRP@GFRP混杂复合材料杆体的水吸收及界面剪切性能长期演化规律。研究结果表明:混杂复合材料杆体皮、芯层及杆体吸水行为符合Fick定律,GFRP皮层扩散系数最大,CFRP芯层次之,混杂复合材料杆体由于在皮/芯界面层形成吸水屏障而扩散系数最小。浸泡在蒸馏水环境下芯层、皮/芯界面及皮层界面剪切强度下降,这是由于浸泡过程中水分子通过氢键形式与树脂基体结合形成结合水,导致树脂基体发生水解和塑化及纤维/树脂界面脱黏。基于Arrhenius加速理论建立了混杂复合材料杆体在三座典型桥梁服役环境下的界面剪切强度预测模型。      

Effects of thermal exposure on mechanical behavior of carbon fiber composite pyramidal truss core sandwich panel

An experimental study was performed to investigate the effect of high temperature exposure on mechanical properties of carbon fiber composite sandwich panel with pyramidal truss core. For this purpose, sandwich panels were exposed to different temperatures for different times. Then sandwich panels were tested under out-of-plane compression till failure after thermal exposure. Our results indicated that both the thermal exposure temperature and time were the important factors affecting the failure of sandwich panels. Severe reductions in residual compressive modulus and strength were observed when sandwich panels were exposed to 300 °C for 6 h. The effect of high temperature exposure on failure mode of sandwich panel was revealed as well. Delamination and low fiber to matrix adhesion caused by the degradation of the matrix properties were found for the specimens exposed to 300 °C. The modulus and strength of sandwich panels at different thermal exposure temperatures and times were predicted with proposed method and compared with measured results. Experimental results showed that the predicted values were close to experimental values.     

Compression and impact testing of two-layer composite pyramidal-core sandwich panels

Quasi-static uniform compression tests and low-velocity concentrated impact tests were conducted to reveal the failure mechanisms and energy absorption capacity of two-layer carbon fiber composite sandwich panels with pyramidal truss cores. Three different volume-fraction cores (i.e., with different relative densities) were fabricated: 1.25%, 1.81%, and 2.27%. Two-layer sandwich panels with identical volume-fraction cores (either 1.25% or 2.27%), and also stepwise graded panels consisting of one light and one heavy core, were investigated under uniform quasi-static compression. Under quasi-static compression, load peaks were identified with complete failure of individual truss layers due to strut buckling or strut crushing, and specific energy absorption was estimated for different core configurations. In the impact test, the damage resulting from low-velocity concentrated impact was investigated. Our results show that compared with glass fiber woven textile truss cores, two-layer carbon fiber composite pyramidal truss cores have comparable specific energy absorptions, and thus could be used in the development of novel light-weight multifunctional structures.     

高精度碳纤维增强树脂复合材料夹层天线面板热变形影响参数仿真与实验

为满足亚毫米波、太赫兹波段等高频天线反射面的应用需求,采用附加树脂修型技术制得1米级、面形精度优于10 μm均方差(RMS)的碳纤维增强树脂(CFRP)复合材料天线面板。主要开展了针对高精度CFRP复合材料面板在极端低温环境下的热变形机制研究。根据基础材料性能测试数据,建立面板的有限元仿真模型,预测大温差工况下多结构参数面板的热变形残差,分析了影响面板热变形特性的主要因素。比较了铝蜂窝和碳管阵列夹芯两种面板结构热变形特性的差异。结果表明,碳管夹芯结构面板具备更高的比刚度和热稳定性。通过仿真结构优化给出了面板的结构设计参数,并重新试制了原型面板。采用基于高精度数字摄影测量的实验方法,对铝蜂窝和碳管阵列两种夹芯结构原型面板在低温环境下的热变形误差进行了测量,通过分析实验与仿真结果的误差来源,讨论了有限元预测方法的可行性,给出了针对高精度CFRP复合材料面板设计及工艺方法的指导意见。      

Tensile properties of high strength polyacrylonitrile (PAN)-based and high modulus pitch-based hybrid carbon fibers-reinforced epoxy matrix composite

The tensile properties of high strength polyacrylonitrile-based (IM600) and high modulus pitch-based (K13D) hybrid carbon fibers-reinforced epoxy matrix composite (CFRP) were investigated. Fiber orientation of the hybrid CFRP specimen was set to [0_(IM600)/0_(K13D)]_2S. The fiber volume fraction of the hybrid CFRP specimen was 55.7 vol% (IM600: 29.3 vol%, K13D: 26.4 vol%). The tensile stress–strain curve of the hybrid CFRP specimen shows a complicated shape (jagged trace). By the high modulus K13D CFRP layers, the hybrid CFRP specimen shows the intermediate modulus in the initial stage of loading. Subsequently, when the K13D CFRP layers begin to fail, the high strength IM600 CFRP layers would hold the load (strength) and the material continues to endure high load without instantaneous failure. Because higher strength fiber can help the load for a certain time after failure occur, the hybrid composite could be considered one example of a material possessing preventing instantaneous failure. The Weibull statistical distributions of the mono (IM600 and K13D) and the hybrid CFRP specimens were also examined. The Weibull modulus for the mono CFRP specimens was calculated to be 22.9 for the IM600 CFRP specimen and 14.4 for the K13D CFRP specimen, respectively. The Weibull modulus for the hybrid CFRP specimen was calculated to be 39.6 for the initial fracture strength and 20.6 for the tensile fracture strength, respectively. The Weibull modulus for the initial fracture strength is higher than that for the K13D CFRP specimen and the Weibull modulus for the tensile fracture strength is almost similar to that for the IM600 CFRP specimen.     

Hybrid epoxy-silyl modified polymer adhesives for CFRP sheets bonded to a steel substrate

This paper presents an experimental study examining the interfacial behavior between a steel substrate and carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) sheets bonded with hybrid epoxy-silyl modified polymer (SMP) adhesives. The epoxy adhesive has high modulus and strength characteristics, while the SMP adhesive possesses a low modulus with permanent elastic nature. The hypothesis tested is that a combination of these two distinct materials can alleviate interfacial stresses along the bond line with maintaining adequate strength. Two types of double-lap tension tests are conducted to evaluate the bond-capacity of the epoxy and SMP adhesives and to study the effect of various hybrid bond schemes. Test results show that the specimens bonded with homogeneous epoxy demonstrate abrupt failure, whereas those with SMP exhibit gradual load-softening at failure. The load-carrying capacity and stiffness of the CFRP–steel interface are not influenced by hybrid bond configurations. The degree of CFRP-debonding is, however, affected by the hybrid bond scheme. Stress transfer from the steel substrate to the CFRP is well maintained along the hybrid bond line with significant local deformability of the interface layer. Analytical models report that shear stresses along the CFRP–steel interface are noticeably mitigated at geometric discontinuities and the proposed hybrid bond technique can be used for structure-level application.     

Fabrication and Testing of Carbon Fiber Reinforced Truss Core Sandwich Panels

Truss core sandwich panels reinforced by carbon fibers were assembled with bonded laminate facesheets and carbon fiber reinforced truss cores.The top and bottom facesheets were interconnected with truss cores.Both ends of the truss cores were embedded into four layers of top and bottom facesheets.The mechanical properties of truss core sandwich panels were then investigated under out-of-plane and in-plane compression loadings to reveal the failure mechanisms of sandwich panels.Experimental results indicated...     

Micromechanics modeling of fatigue failure mechanisms in a hybrid polymer matrix composite

Initiation of fatigue damage for a hybrid polymer matrix composite material was studied via 3-Dimensional viscoelastic representative volume element modeling in order to gain further understanding. It was found that carbon fiber reinforced composites perform better in fatigue loading, in comparison to glass fiber reinforced composites, due to the fact that the state of stress within the matrix material was considerably lower for carbon fiber reinforced composites eliminating (or at least prolonging) fatigue damage initiation. The effect of polymer aging was also evaluated through thermal aging of neat resin specimens. Short-term viscoelastic material properties of unaged and aged neat resin specimens were measured using Dynamic Mechanical Analysis. With increasing aging time a corresponding increase in storage modulus was found. Increases in the storage modulus of the epoxy matrix subsequently resulted in a higher state of predicted stress within the matrix material from representative volume element analyses. Various parameters common to unidirectional composites were numerically investigated and found to have varying levels of impact on the prediction of the initiation of fatigue damage.     

The compressive response of new composite truss cores

New approaches for fabricating truss cellular cores using pultruded unidirectional fiber-reinforced composite rods and yarns are described. Based on the performance and observed failure mechanism of two initial ideas, a final design named “semi-wire-woven bulk Kagome” (semi-WBK) core is developed. Under compressive load, three types of semi-WBK core specimens (which differ in the type and the amount of adhesive bond used) failed, mainly by premature collapse at the ends of the pultruded rods (defibration). In terms of strength, equivalent Young’s modulus, and density, the semi-WBK cores showed performance comparable to honeycomb cores and pyramidal CFRP lattices.     

Mechanical behavior of sandwich panels with hollow Al–Si tubes core construction

A new type of lightweight sandwich panels consisting of vertically aligned hollow Al–Si alloy tubes as core construction and carbon fiber composite face sheets was designed. The hollow Al–Si alloy tubes were fabricated using precision casting and were bonded to the face sheets using an epoxy adhesive. The out-of-plane compression (i.e. core crushing), in-plane compression, and three-point bending response of the panels were tested until failure. The hollow Ai–Si alloy tubes core configuration show superior specific strength under crushing compared to common metallic and stochastic foam cores. Under in-plane compression and three-point bending, the buckling of face sheets and debonding of hollow cores from the face sheets were observed. Simple analytical relationships based on the concepts of mechanics of materials were provided for the compression tests, which estimate the sandwich panels’ strength with high fidelity. For three-point bending, detailed finite element analysis was used to model the response and initial failure of the sandwich panels.     

Ti/CFRP超混杂复合材料残余应力研究

由于组成Ｔｉ／ＣＦＲＰ超混杂复合材料层板的炭纤维、钛合金薄板及树脂的热膨胀系数的差异,以及树脂固化过程的收缩,在层间有残余应力形成,残余应力的存在会对材料的力学性能及加工性能产生影响。因此采用应变片包埋法和非对称层板法对该Ｔｉ／ＣＦＲＰ的残余应力进行了研究,推导出计算层板残余应力的计算公式,经修正后的计算结果与测试结果基本吻合。