Structural analysis of the adhesive bond in a honeycomb core sandwich panel

Detailed finite element models are used to examine the effect of the adhesive joint between the honeycomb core and the face sheets on the load transfer and static response of sandwich panels. The square-cell honeycomb core panels considered have simply supported edges and are subjected to static uniform pressure loading. The sandwich core, face sheets and adhesive joint are modeled by using three-dimensional solid elements. The total strain energy in the finite element model of the adhesive joint material are used to investigate the effect of adhesive joint characteristics (thickness and adhesive joint fillet size) as well as the core cell size and wall thickness on the load transfer in the core/face sheet joint.