Assessment of continuum models for sandwich panel honeycomb cores

Detailed finite element models are used for predicting the free-vibration response of infinitely long and rectangular sandwich panels. The panels considered have square-cell honeycomb core and simply supported edges. The sandwich core and face sheets are modeled by using three-dimensional solid elements and two-dimensional plate elements. The predictions of the finite element models are compared with those obtained by using higher-order sandwich theory for panels with the core replaced by an effective (equivalent) continuum. Three different approaches are used for estimating the effective material properties of the equivalent continuum layer.