The sensitivity of the foam-core parameters under impact loading

This study presents the numerical investigation of the low-velocity impact for the foam-cored sandwich composites. Firstly, the proposed FEA model is validated by comparing the results between simulation and test. The user subroutine VUMAT and the crushable foam model are chosen to describe the damage of the face sheets and the characteristics of the foam material, respectively. The detailed damage process of the sheets and the foam is clearly shown. The sensitivity of seven parameters related to foam-core material are studied. It is shown that the yield strength, the fracture strain and the fracture displacement have significant effects on the impact-resistance of the foam-cored sandwich composites.