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Fatigue studies of polyurethane sandwich structures

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Abstract

The fatigue characteristics of polyurethane foam-cored (PUF) composite sandwich structures were investigated using three-point bending tests carried out according to ASTM C 393. Three types of specimens (epoxy/glass-PUF-epoxy/glass, polyester/glass-PUF-polyester/glass, and epoxy/glass-PUF-polyester/glass) were considered for investigation. Experimental results indicate that degradation of stiffness occurs due to debonding and sliding between the skin and the foam during fatigue cycles. Epoxy/glass-PUF-epoxy/glass sandwich structures exhibit higher bending strength along with higher stiffness degradation than the other two types of sandwich panels, due to higher initial fatigue loading. The lowest fatigue properties have been obtained for the polyester/glass-PUF-polyester/glass sandwich panel specimens. Better performance of the epoxy/glass-PUF-epoxy/glass sandwich panels is most likely due to the superior properties of the outer thin skins. Most of the specimens fail within the foam region and not at the skin level. This situation is possibly due to debonding between the foam and the skin. The fatigue damage development in the foam and skin has been investigated using scanning electron microscopy.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Research and Development, Department of Mechanical Engineering, R. V. College of Engineering, 560 059, Bangalore, India

    S. C. Sharma, M. Krishna & H. N. Narasimha Murthy

  2. Leonard C. Nelson College of Engineering, West Virginia University Institute, 25130, Montgomery, WV

    M. Sathyamoorthy

  3. Centre for Advanced Composite Materials, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland, New Zealand

    Debes Bhattacharya

Authors
  1. S. C. Sharma
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  2. M. Krishna
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  3. H. N. Narasimha Murthy
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  4. M. Sathyamoorthy
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  5. Debes Bhattacharya
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Sharma, S.C., Krishna, M., Narasimha Murthy, H.N. et al. Fatigue studies of polyurethane sandwich structures. J. of Materi Eng and Perform 13, 637–641 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1361/10599490420052

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1361/10599490420052

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