Mechanical behavior of multilayered sandwich panels of wood veneer and a core of cork agglomerates

• Innovative sandwich panels were produced with wood veneer and cork agglomerates.
• Sandwich cores of cork agglomerates have high performance under compression.
• Multilayered veneer–cork agglomerates panels show better mechanical resistance.
• Sandwich panels with cork agglomerates can be used as partition or interior walls.
• Standard industrial plywood procedures may be used for panel production.

Sandwich panels were produced using wood veneer of Aleppo pine as face sheets and cork agglomerate as core, including multilayered designs, for use in construction. The mechanical behavior of the panels was tested for perpendicular compression and tensile, longitudinal compression, three and four point bending, and shear. The load–displacement curves, patterns and cracking fractures were analyzed.The cork agglomerate provided a high performance under perpendicular compression, while the wood layers protected the core material and increased mechanical strength under tensile loads. Failure occurred mostly by fracture between cork granules. Multilayered sandwich panels showed higher strength and an increased number of layers improved the mechanical performance of the composite structure.The results suggested that these sandwich panels may be used as construction materials for paneling or partition walls in interior applications with the advantage of environmental friendliness and cost effectiveness.