Quasi-static response of sandwich steel beams with corrugated cores

• We perform quasistatic tests and finite element analyses of corrugated steel beams.
• Core with uniform thickness resists the largest load at initial core crushing.
• Cores with increasing layer thickness perform better than reversed counterparts.

The response of sandwich steel beams with corrugated cores to quasi-static loading is investigated by employing experimental and computational approaches. The sandwich steel beam consists of top and bottom substrates made of AISI Steel 1018 and four corrugated core layers made of AISI Steel 1008. Various arrangements of the corrugated core layers with both uniform and graded layer thicknesses are considered. Three core arrangements with identical relative densities are used to study the effects of uniform versus graded core layer thicknesses onto the quasi-static behavior of corrugated steel beams. Finite element models are validated against quasi-static tests, and lender themselves suitable for a parametric study. A parametric study is also carried out on large-scale structural size beams of a few meters in length. The deformation modes observed in this study include core crushing, and plate bending and shear. It is found that core arrangement and beam span is key factors governing the quasi-static response of sandwich beams with corrugated cores.

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