Impacts on foam stabilised composite structures: Experimental and numerical study

Abstract
A dropweight tester is used to make low velocity tests on specific sandwich type structures. Sandwich are made of glass-epoxy skin and polyurethane foam core. The skins can be straight or little curved, and impact direction is the global skin direction. The aim of these tests is to study the initiation of rupture in such structures: local buckling of skin and foam core rupture. Experimental results are given. They show the evolution of buckling critical stress in the skin when impact velocity increases. The rupture mode in curved skin specimen is also studied: rupture is no more provoked by buckling. A numerical analysis is proposed to model the behaviour of the structure and the rupture initiation. Finally, a method is developed, in order to predict the propagation of skin debonding during impact: an element layer under the skin is damaged with a specific law to simulate debonding.