The Mechanical Response of a Hybrid Foam Glass-Epoxy Composite Corrugated Cellular Structure Sandwich Panel

The mechanical response of a novel hybrid glass-fiber composite corrugated cellular structure sandwich panel when subjected to out-of-plane compressive loading is investigated to evaluate the structure’s potential adaptation into vehicle armor. Inspired by the persistent military need to develop effective, lightweight armor for vehicle protection against buried Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs), this study provides a detailed analysis of the compressive response of the hybrid corrugated sandwich structure under quasi-static and dynamic loading. The through-thickness (out-of-plane) compressive strength, stiffness, densification strain, and energy absorption of the core is measured through quasi-static loading, along with peak failure strengths and impulse mitigation under dynamic compression and high explosive sand blast loading. The goal is to identify and characterize the quasi-static response of this novel hybrid composite corrugated sandwich panel core, core struts, and associated constitutive materials through empirical testing, develop quasi-static analytic predictions for the strength and modulus of the core and core struts, and finally, empirically investigate the dynamic strength and impulse mitigation performance along with the associated dynamic failure mechanisms.