Outcome: To design and fabricate a drop-weight impact testing machine and compare the failure mechanism in glass/epoxy and basalt/epoxy faced sandwich panels.
Description: Sandwich construction consists of a pair of thin, stiff facesheets separated by a low-density core and is one of the light-weight material combinations developed lately to be used in the applications where high flexural rigidity, buckling resistance and energy absorption are important. This study involves the fabrication of composite sandwich panels using glass/epoxy and basalt/epoxy composites as facesheets respectively and polystyrene foam as the common core material. The sandwich panels will be investigated and compared for damage and modes of failure when subjected to low-velocity impact. The impact test will be performed using a drop-weight impact machine which is to be designed and fabricated as a part of this study. The impact test will be performed by varying the impact velocities and the resulting failure modes will be analysed using a finite element model and the results will be compared using a suitable NDT technique.
