Experimental and Numerical Analysis of Hollow and Foam-filled A-stringer/A-former under Axial Compression Load and Bending Moment

Abstract

The topic of this investigation deals with experimental and numerical analysis of different configurations of hollow and of polymethacrylimide (PMI) foam-filled A-stringers/A-formers under axial compression load and bending moment. In this connection the finite element analysis (FEA) program ANSYS® is used for the numerical approach. The result of this analysis is that PMI foam-filled A-profiles show significant higher buckling loads in comparison to hollow ones. These improvements depend on the loading conditions, e.g., bending moment and axial compression, as well as the geometry of the A-profile.