In-plane shear behaviour of fibre composite sandwich beams using asymmetrical beam shear test

The in-plane shear behaviour of a new generation composite sandwich beam made up of glass fibre skins and modified phenolic core material was investigated to determine its application as shear loading component in a structural beam. losipescu shear test was conducted to characterise the shear properties of the fibre composite skins and the phenolic core material. The fibre composite sandwich beams were then tested under asymmetrical beam shear to determine its behaviour under in-plane shear loading. The results show that the in-plane shear behaviour of the composite sandwich beam is similar to that of the skins. A theoretical prediction of the in-plane shear strength of the composite sandwich beam was proposed and showed a good agreement with the experimental results. Based on the results of the study, the asymmetrical shear test is recommended as a test method for determining the shear properties of sandwich structures with high strength core materials. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.