Low-velocity impact of sandwich composite plates

In this paper we investigate impact and compression after impact properties of plain weave carbon fiber sandwich composites. Impact tests were conducted on different sample types to obtain information about absorbed energy and maximum impact force. The different samples consisted of foam-filled and hollow honeycomb cores with four-layer carbon fiber facesheets on one or both sides. The impact and compression after impact data provided valuable information to allow for comparisons between the different sample types. Also, the compression after impact tests were conducted in order to determine the reduction in compressive strength when comparing impacted to non-impacted samples. In conclusion, a two-degrees-of-freedom spring/mass model was compared to experimental results. The comparison helped illustrate the limitations of current impact theory. This paper was presented, in part, at a symposium honoring Dr Christian P. Burger, Novel Applications of Experimental Methods in Mechanics, held at the 2003 SEM Annual Conference and Exposition on Experimental and Applied Mechanics, June 2–4, 2003, Charlotte, North Carolina.