Flexural performance of composite sandwich wall panels with foamed concrete

The flexural behavior of composite sandwich wall panels with different thicknesses, numbers of holes, and hole forms, and arrangement form of longitudinal steel bar (uniform type and concealed-beam type) are investigated. A total of twelve composite sandwich wall panels are prepared, utilizing modified polystyrene particles mixed with foam concrete for the flexural performance test. The failure pattern of the composite sandwich wall panels is influenced by the extruded polystyrene panel (XPS) panel thickness and the reinforcement ratio in combination, resulting in both flexural and shear failure modes. Increasing the XPS panel thickness causes the specimens to transition from flexural failure to shear failure. An increase in the reinforcement ratio leads to the transition from flexural failure to shear failure. The hole form on the XPS panel and the steel bar arrangement form affect the loading behavior of the specimens. Plum-arrangement hole form specimens exhibit lower steel bar strain and deflection compared to linear-arrangement hole form specimens. Additionally, specimens with concealed beam-type steel bar display lower steel bar strain and deflection than uniform-type steel bar specimens. However, the hole form and steel bar arrangement form have a limited impact on the ultimate load. Theoretical formulas for cracking load are provided for both fully composite and non-composite states. When compared to the experimental values, it is observed that the cracking load of the specimens with XPS panels closely matches the calculations for the non-composite state. An accurate prediction model for the ultimate load of fully composite wall panels is developed. These findings offer valuable insights into the behavior of composite sandwich wall panels and provide a basis for predicting their performance under various design factors and conditions.