In sandwich structures, lightweight cellular materials as the core hold the face sheets far away from the neutral axis to maximize the bending performance of the structure. Honeycomb materials as a major type of lightweight cellular materials have been widely applied in various fields, including aerospace, vehicle, marine, architecture and mechanical engineering, due to reliable mechanical properties and excellent designability. Using fiber-reinforced composites is an efficient method to develop ultralight honeycomb materials with superior mechanical behaviors. In recent years, fiber-reinforced composite honeycomb materials possessing lightweight and excellent mechanical performances have attracted noticeable attention to replacing traditional aluminum honeycombs and Nomex honeycombs. Compared to metal, polymer and Nomex paper, fiber-reinforced composites possess various merits, such as high specific stiffness and specific strength, excellent fatigue property, corrosion resistance and high-temperature resistance. Thus, the applications of fiber-reinforced honeycomb material for sandwich core have unlimited potential in hypersonic vehicles, long-range rockets, cargo vessels and protective systems. Although the fact that attention has been rapidly increasing, there is a lack of comprehensive reviews of new advances in the field of fiber-reinforced composite honeycomb materials. In this review, new advances reported by different scientists in the field of fiber-reinforced honeycomb materials have been reviewed and analyzed to provide an in-depth overview and knowledge for beginners in the field of ultra-lightweight and high-performance composite sandwich architectures. The challenges and prospects for the development of fiber-reinforced honeycomb materials have also been presented.

New advances in fiber-reinforced composite honeycomb materials

Lightweight and high-strength sandwich structures with advanced materials are essential for the sustainable development of future industrial development. This paper focuses on investigating the fab...

Fabrication and compression properties of continuous carbon fiber reinforced polyether ether ketone thermoplastic composite sandwich structures with lattice cores

This study investigates numerically and experimentally the effect of longitudinal ribbon reinforcement in conventional honeycomb structure on the various dynamic characteristics of a hybrid composite sandwich plate. Longitudinal strips are considered to be embedded along the transverse directions at various locations of a honeycomb core material without and with carbon nanotubes (CNT) reinforcement in a composite sandwich plate. The governing differential equations of motion of the various hybrid honeycomb composite sandwich plate configurations with strips inserted in conventional honeycomb structures as core layer having top and bottom face composite layers are derived using higher order shear deformation theory (HSDT) and solved numerically using a four noded rectangular finite element. Further, experimental investigations are performed by fabricating the various strips embedded hybrid honeycomb core material with and without CNT reinforcement to evaluate the shear and loss moduli using the alternative dynamic approach. The efficacy of the developed finite element formulation is demonstrated by comparing the experimental and numerical results obtained in terms of natural frequencies and loss factors for the various prototypes of honeycomb composite sandwich plates. Also, the effect of variation in CNT content and thickness of longitudinal ribbon reinforcement in conventional honeycomb core material and ply orientation of the face sheets on the various dynamic properties of hybrid composite structures are studied under various end conditions. This study proposes that the ribbon reinforcement location and the addition of CNTs in honeycomb core materials strongly influence the stiffness, damping and transverse vibration displacements of the ribbon reinforced hybrid composite sandwich plates.

Assessment of dynamic properties of hybrid ribbon reinforced multifunctional composite sandwich plates: Numerical and experimental investigation

The large difference between in-plane and out-of-plane mechanical properties limits the application of traditional composite honeycombs in submersibles. In this work, the carbon fiber tube reinforced polymer composite (CTPC) which have lightweight characteristic and high hydrostatic strength is designed and manufactured. The combination between epoxy resin and carbon fiber tube inhibits the buckling failure and improves the bearing capacity of the tube. Resin binds carbon fiber tubes and forms a stable stress transmission path between them. The hydrostatic response of the CTPC has been investigated by simulation and test. The measured results show good agreement with the simulation. Due to its high hydrostatic bearing capacity and lightweight, the CTPC can be used as a new type of buoyancy material in submersibles. 

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/am/pii/S0266353821004309

Design and characterization of the carbon fiber tube reinforced polymer composite for full ocean depth submersibles

In the present study, the free and forced vibration responses of the composite sandwich plate with carbon nanotube reinforced honeycomb as the core material and laminated composite plates as the to...

Vibration analysis of a multifunctional hybrid composite honeycomb sandwich plate

This paper presents the state of art in the field of composite shells with focus on stress analysis, buckling and post-buckling responses under mechanical and thermal loading. Many researchers have investigated the buckling and post-buckling responses of cylindrical, conical, spherical, thin and thick composite shells with single and doubly curved shells under mechanical and thermal loading. From the literature it can be inferred that hydrostatic pressure, axial compression and thermal environment influence the buckling behavior of laminated composite shell significantly. An effort is taken to review the research on buckling and post-buckling responses of cylindrical and conical shaped shells under mechanical and thermal loading and their behavior during buckling and post-buckling conditions. POLYM. COMPOS., 2017. © 2017 Society of Plastics Engineers

Recent developments in investigation on buckling and post buckling responses of laminated composite shells

In this study, numerically and experimentally the dynamic characteristics of graphene-reinforced glass fiber–reinforced polymer hybrid uniform and thickness tapered laminated composite beams were i...

Influence of graphene fillers on vibration characteristics of tapered hybrid GFRP composite beams under elevated temperature condition: Numerical and experimental study:

Paul Praveen A

Papers

Vibration analysis of a multifunctional hybrid composite honeycomb sandwich plate

Recent developments in investigation on buckling and post buckling responses of laminated composite shells

Influence of graphene fillers on vibration characteristics of tapered hybrid GFRP composite beams under elevated temperature condition: Numerical and experimental study: