Effects of Bonding Stiffness on Thermal Stresses in Sandwich Panels

Abstract

Sandwich panels made of thin skins and a lightweight core expand and/or bow when subjected to temperature changes. The significance of induced thermal stresses in the panels depends on material properties. The effects of bonding layers on these stresses were not investigated in available works on the structural analysis of sandwich panels. This paper presents elasticity solutions for thermal stresses in sandwich panels with interlayer slip. The effects of finite bonding stiffnesses on the structural behavior of the panels are investigated. The numerical results show that the bonding stiffness, up to a certain level, has a strong effect on panel structural response. The answer to what constitutes perfect bonding is best answered in terms of the ratio of the core stiffness to the bonding stiffness. A heat chamber is designed and used to test sandwich specimens under different temperature changes. The experimental values for normal stresses in the skins are in good agreement with the present theory.