11TH INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON COMPOSITE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY Lightweight Composite Structures for Energy-Absorbing Applications Dr. Wesley Cantwell Associate Dean for Research Khalifa University, Abu Dhabi, UAE This talk will discuss the energy-absorbing capability of high-performance composites based on, for example, glass and carbon fiber reinforced epoxy resins. Composites are often considered as offering relatively poor properties under dynamic loading, particularly under localized transverse impact loading. Here, the impact response of composite structures will initially be discussed briefly, where the different failure mechanisms that occur during dynamic loading of fiber-reinforced composite structures will be elucidated. The influence of key materials and test parameters, such as material properties, specimen geometry and strain- rate will be discussed briefly. The possibility of developing impact-resistant sandwich structures based on graded core designs will also be considered. The talk will then continue with a discussion of how the aforementioned failure mechanisms contribute to the outstanding energy-absorbing characteristics of correctly-designed composite structures, Attention will focus on how correctly-designed composite tubes can be employed to absorb energy under extreme loading conditions, such as that associated with low velocity impact loading. The influence of composite tube geometry, in particular, will be assessed focusing on how the use of very small diameter composite tubes (low diameter to thickness ratio) can be used to develop a new range of energy-absorbing cores with very high values of energy-absorption for use in dynamic loading events. One example of such a structure is a composite tube reinforced foam core material, where specific energy absorption values can be as high as 100 ki/kg. An examination of the composites after testing indicates that they are reduced to fine powder, indicating that significant energy has been dissipated inthe process of failure. The energy-absorbing response of these structures will be compared with previously-published data on core system, such as aluminum honeycombs and plain polymer foams. Finally, the talk will conclude with a discussion regarding how such materials can be used to enhance the blast resistance of lightweight structures. Recent data from blast tests on a range of reinforced designs will be presented and the great potential offered by these new designs will be highlighted.LITH INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON COMPOSITE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY Experimental and FEA Investigation of Hybrid Cardboard Panels Waleed K Ahmed ", Ali Hilal-Alnagbi ', Anas Hallalo ', Ahmad Altelbani ' ‘ Mechanical Engineering Department, College of Engineering, United Arab Emirates University, Al Ain, UAE. *e-mail: wahmed@uaeu.ac.ae Abstract The aim of the paper is to investigate experimentally as well as using FEA honeycomb cardboard panels, The cardboards were strengthened using CFRP and GFRP. The specimens were tested under three point flexural tests, where the unstrengthened specimen’s tests results are taken as a reference to compare the other strengthened samples in order to understand the percentage increase of the stiffness and the strength. The main challenge faced was the absorption of the epoxy by the cardboards panels; consequently, diverse procedures were implemented to overcome this problem which led eventually to improve the results. Finite element ana sis was used to compare the experimental results Key words carbon fiber, glass fiber, honeycomb, mechanical properties 1. Introduction With the development of technology and the materials, the people figured out the preserving the earth materials is the most important issue that should be maintained to last the human gender. This can be secured through adopting Green thoughts in manufacturing and building things needed for our life, like building, cars, airplanes,...etc. The idea is not to reduce the consumption of the raw materials that is under continues depletion, but trying to use whatever made and becomes waste and debris from the other industries. This definitely reflects it positive impact on our life through many sectors, starting from creating new jobs, and ending with minimizing fuel consumptions and hence reducing the global warming. However, the aerospace industries is one of the biggest sectors in the word as well as it has been chosen as one of the promising economic industry in UAE. Therefore our aim is to support this industry through exploring new horizons of using green materials that can be adopted by the local acrospace manufacturer toward reducing cost and well as being greener in this industry and much more. Due its superior characteristics, like stiffness and durability, fatigue resistance and weight reduction, fiber reinforced composites have become so popular in the industrial sectors especially for aerospace and civil applications, as an alternative to the conventional ‘materials used [1]. Honeycomb is a superior lightweight structure which is available in a wide range of mechanical and thermal properties [2] due to the variety of cell sizes. It is used as core material in sandwich structure to increase the stifiness/weight ratio and having a good energy absorbing performance [3]. Unfortunately, the reinforcing fibers are commonly usedExperimental and FEA Investigation of Hybrid Cardboard Panels : Ahmed, W. et al for composite are synthetic materials like glass, aramid, and carbon fibers. Nowadays, the world is interested in preserving the natural resources and to reduce the Co2 emissions, therefore, more green and sustainable solutions have been adopted toward this goal. Part of these trends is to use natural fibers to produce structural elements, since they have low cost in comparison with the inorganic alternates, besides to the moderate strength properties as well as the low density [4]. Many attempts were done to produce eco-friendly honeycomb cores for sandwich panels manufactured by combining flax fibers with polyethylene matrix where the Tests results, reported a great improvement of reinforced cores compared to un-reinforced ones in mechanical properties [5]. Sandwich panels consist of two thin faces adhered to a light core. These faces provide the flexural strength and stiffness and to the sandwich, whereas the core functions, are to transmit the shear between the faces. A strong core can also contribute to the flexural stiffness and to the out-of-plane shear and compressive strength of the panel [6]. Poor mechanical properties of the core would depreciate the performance of the panel [7]. Natural core materials may be made of foams or balsa [8] or can be made using corrugated or honeycomb elements [9]. The corrugated core provides a good support to the sandwich faces [10], while honeycomb core provides multidirectional support. Due to the light weight and low cost of the sandwich panels [11] a continuous interest in developing new ‘materials still exists. The main objective of the present proposal is to adopt green material like sandwich cardboard to be part of the production of aerospace structural elements, Unfortunately this material has low mechanical properties, therefor it is not proper for any industries, but definitely it is a green materials worldwide available, cheap as well as recyclable, With advances of the FRP, it become possible to produce a hybrid sections, where it can sustain higher levels of loads and in the same time being flexible, lightweight and cheap. This needs blended divers knowledge, such as design experience, materials, applications as well as manufacturing to come up with a creative idea to resolve challenges and problems as well as to implement green thoughts. This research proposal is a green attempt to enhance recyclable material to be used for aerospace applications through using little amounts of FRP to strengthening purposes 2. Material properties In the present analysis, the main material practiced was the honeycomb cardboard sandwich panels, where the material was supplied by the manufacturer [12]. ‘The dimensions of the cardboard components are listed below: Honeycomb cell dimension 10mm, Honeycomb cell height 23mm Cardboard upper and lower layer thickness Imm Honeycomb Cardboard sandwich panel height 25mm On the other hand, for the epoxy used in the analysis, was ROT-001-Epikote 828(Epoxy Resin) and HUN-002-Aradur 42BD (Hardener), whete the mixing ratio is 4:1. The carbon fiber mat used YCC - 102 3 K Plain weave carbon-200g x1000mm. 3. Samples preparation Basically, nine techniques were adopted to manufacture the strengthened honeycomb sandwich panels in order to practice different conditions of the epoxy absorption. For each method, two sets of samples were produced to investigate the impact of the strengthening inLITH INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON COMPOSITE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY two different directions of the honeycomb cells, the longitudinal (ie., the strong) and the transverse (ie, the weak). For each set, three samples were prepared from S0emx50em. honeycomb cardboard panel to maintain consistent results. The final tested specimens having a dimension of 40cmx10em. In general, the procedures used for the strengthening can be summarized as following: + First sample: one side of the honeycomb board was covered with a layer of epoxy and immediately with the woven fiber carbon, After one day of curing, another layer of epoxy was added and left to cure, since the epoxy was mostly absorbed by the cardboard, In each stage, the weight of the board was measured by a digital scale. And this implemented for the subsequent techniques. + Second sample, one side of the honeycomb board was covered with a layer of epoxy along with the woven carbon fiber reinforcement and was then left to cure. + Third sample, one side of the honeycomb board was covered with a layer of epoxy and after curing for one day, it was ground using grinding paper of grit 200, and then another epoxy layer along with the woven carbon fiber was added all together and left for curing for one day as well, + Fourth sample, one side of the honeycomb board was covered with a layer of epoxy. After curing for one day another epoxy layer along with the woven carbon fiber was added. + Fifth sample, one side of the honeycomb board was covered with a layer of epoxy after curing; a cured CFRP layer that was already prepared previously by hand layup that was added along with a layer of epoxy. + Sixth sample one side of the honeycomb board was covered with @ layer of epoxy along. with the cured CFRP layer similar to the layer mentioned in the fifth sample- then it was left to cure + Seventh sample, one side of the honeycomb board was covered with a layer of epoxy, after curing it was ground using grinding paper of grit 200, then a cured CFRP layer was added along with a layer of epoxy and was then left to cure. + Eighth sample, one side of the honeycomb board was covered with the woven carbon fiber and the epoxy was added then it was left to cure. + Ninth sample, no reinforcement (i.e., no woven carbon fiber nor CFRP) was used, where the impact of using the epoxy to coat the honeycomb cardboard sample alone was a basic factor of the study for this sample, therefore one side of the honeycomb board was covered with epoxy and left to cure, Figure | illustrated the samples prepared. Fig. 1 Tested cardboards, from left: Raw, coated with epoxy, strengthened with FRP, strengthened with CRP. "Experimental and FEA Investigation of Hybrid C: -dboard Panels : Ahmed, W. et al 4, Experimental procedure Three-point flexural tests were conducted for the whole manufactured samples as well as to the unstrengthened ones following ISO 5628 [13] for bending stiffitess of papers and boards. Six samples of each fabricated set were tested, The dimensions pf the tested samples were 400mmx100mm. The distance between the supports was 160mm, The applied force probe profile is of 12mm diameter and 60mm depth, as shown in Figure 2. Fig. 2 Honeycomb cardboard subjected to 3-poni flexural test. Before starting the test, the thickness and the weight of each sample were measured, The center of the sample was placed precisely under the loading head of the testing machine and the head was lowered until it slightly touches the sample, The vertical testing speed of the applied force head was assigned to a speed of 10mm/min, Both the applied load on the sample and the result deflection were measured and recorded, The test was conducted two times for each set of samples; one time while the fiber reinforcement was in contact with the applied force (i.c., CFRP in compression side), and the other time while the fiber reinforcement was on the opposite face of the applied force (i.e., CFRP in tension side), 5. Mathematical model The standard honeycomb (Figure 3) sandwich panel formulas used will be given first and then the exact solution discussed, The panel nomenclature used in this analysis given below. rao J] Tk Eh F Fig. 3 Details of the honeycomb sandwich section sandwich panel width = sandwich panel thickness facing modulus core bending modulus, assumed equal to zero distance from center top facing to center bottom facing thickness ‘uy where 1 — Poisson's ratio and subscripts x and y indicate the direction core shear stress facing bending stress. ‘The subscript ¢ denotes the core, while subscripts 1 and 2 denote top and bottom facings, respectively. If both facings are the same, then ty =t= ty B= B= E; and A roLITH INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON COMPOSITE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY In the theoretical part, only the deflection of the samples will be calculated which answers to the maximum load recorded in the experimental procedure for each sample, The equation which used to calculate the deflection is [2]: K,PL hGch _ KyPla ~— D While Kb and Ks are constants which depend on the type of flexural test which in our case is a simply supported flexural test, D can be calculated by the following equation: Eyt,Egt,h?b E,tyAy + EgtaAy 6, Finite Element analysis A finite element model, as shown in figure 4, was adopted to compare both experimental as well as theoretical results, ANSYS software was used to model the strengthened pan depicted in Figure 3. A verification test was done to validate the adopted modes, which showed an error of 1.321% than the mathematical model. 4 Finite element model and analysis of honeycomb cardboard subjected to flexural load, 7. Conclusion It has been observed that the best results of the strengthening techniques when the cardboard panels were coated with epoxy and cured for 24hr and then strengthening either by carbon fiber with epoxy or by pre-cured carbon fiber ply. Besides, all the samples showed a failure by peeling due to the load stiffness of the honeycomb cells under the point load, which made high vertical deformation that led eventually to creep of the strengthened carbon pl. ‘The maximum load capacity observed was almost double the unstrengthened panels, whereas the ‘minimum central deflection measured was about twenty percent of the unstrengthened panel, The recommendation is to investigate the case with different strengthening fibers as well as the adhesive materials. Besides, using filler material with the epoxy may be part of the success that may occur, since this may reduce the absorption of the epoxy by the cardboard. Strengthening both sides of the panel will clarify the behavior more. 3Experimental and FEA Investigation of Hybrid C: -dboard Panels : Ahmed, W. et al Acknowledgements The authors would like to acknowledge Mubadala Development Company, Abu Dhabi, UAE for their financial and technical support through the undergraduate research program related to Aerospace Sciences, Engineering, and Technology. Besides, appreciation to the Eltete Middle East FZ LLC, Dubai for their cooperation and technical support. Reference 1. Tamin, M. N. 2012. Damage and Fracture of Composite Materials and Structures Advanced structural materials, Springer. Vol 17. 2. Bitzer, T. 1997. Honeycomb technology. Materials design manufacturing applications and testing. London (UK): Chapman & Hall 3. Hou, S., S. Zhao, L. Ren, X. Han, and Q. Li. 2013. “Crashworthiness optimization of corrugated sandwich panels,” Mater. Des.,51:1071-84. 4, Faruk, ©. 2012. “Biocomposites reinforced with natural fibers: 2000-2010,” Progr. Polym. Sci, 37(11):1552-96, 5. Petrone, G., S. Rao, S. De Rosa , BR. Mace , F. Franco, and D. Bhattacharyya. 2013. “Initial experimental investigations on natural fibre reinforced honeycomb core panels” Composites: Part B, 55:400-406. 6. Thomsen, 0. T. 2009. “Sandwich materials for wind turbine blades-present and future,” J Sandwich Struct. Mater., 11:7-26. 7. Saha, G. C, A. L. Kalamkarov, and A.V. 2007. “Georgiades. Effective elastic characteristics of honeycomb sandwich composite shells made of generally orthotropic materials,” Compos. A: Appl. Sci. Manuf, 38:1533-46. 8. Da Silva, A., and S. Kyriakides. 2007. “Compressive response and failure of balsa wood,” Int. J Solids. Struct, 44:8685-117. 9. Sun, Y., and L. Gao, 2013, “Structural responses of all-composite improved-pyramidal truss sandwich cores,” Mater. Des., 43:50-8. 10. Pflug, J., B. Vangrimde, I. Verpoest, P. Bratfisch, and D. Vandepitte. 2003, “Honeycomb core materials: new concepts for continuous production,” SAMPE J, 39:22-30. 11, Pflug, J., and I. Verpoest. 2006. “Sandwich materials selection charts,” J. Sandwich. Struct Mater., 8:407-21 12, Eltete Middle East for Smart Sustainable Packaging, Jebel Ali, Dubai, Attp:/ivww.elteteme.comy. 13, ISO 5628:2012(E): Paper and board — Determination of bending stiffness -General principles for two-point, three-point and four-point methods. 4