PERFORMANCE EVALUATION OF HONEYCOMB FOAM CORE HYBRID SANDWICH COMPOSITES WITH VARYING FIBER REINFORCED POLYMER SKIN

Abstract

This research is an analysis of a unique high-density honeycomb foam named Lantor Soric, a flexible core material specifically used for resin infusion. To understand the full scope of this unique core material, it was bonded with various synthetic, natural, and hybrid face sheets. The glass, carbon, and jute fibers were utilized to prepare the face sheets, and epoxy was used as a binder. The sandwich composite samples were developed by a vacuum resin infusion technique. The performance of the sandwich composite, such as water absorption, flammability, and tensile and flexural strength, revealed that the addition of honeycomb foam to the composite structure improved the performance, such as water absorption, flammability, and tensile and flexural strength of the sandwich composite. The honeycomb foam was able to distribute the resin evenly throughout the laminate via its flow channels. Also, the hybrid composite of natural and synthetic fibers showed some astonishing properties in mechanical testing. The failure mechanism of the sandwich composite was inspected using scanning electron microscopy. Fractography revealed that the main mechanism for the failure was fiber pull out, voids, and interfacial debonding.