Mechanical behavior of sandwich panels with different core geometries under three-point bending

The novelty of this study lies in its systematic comparison and numerical analysis of sandwich panels with different core geometries (square, hexagonal, and circle-square) under imposed displacements and deformations using the finite element method. The strength and toughness of these sandwich structures are influenced by the interaction between the core and the face sheets, making their geometric configuration a critical factor. Using finite element analysis, three distinct core designs square, hexagonal (honeycomb), and a novel circle-square configuration are evaluated. The results reveal that the circle-square core exhibits superior load-bearing capacity and structural integrity compared to traditional square and honeycomb cores. This improvement is attributed to its optimized stress distribution and enhanced energy absorption, which mitigate localized failure mechanisms. This study provides a comprehensive assessment of the influence of core geometry and fiber orientation on the structural performance of sandwich composites. The key contribution is the identification of the circle-square core as an optimized design, demonstrating superior strength compared to square and hexagonal cores. The results showed that the circlesquare core exhibits a 25% higher resistance compared to the square panel and 17.6% higher than the hexagonal panel.