Dynamic response of clamped sandwich beams with fluid-fillied corrugated cores.

• Blast resistance of fluid-filled corrugated sandwich beams was investigated experimentally and numerically. • Fluid filling could effectively reduce mid-span deflection of the face sheet and enhance the plastic buckling/progressive folding resistance of the corrugated core. • A combined SPH-FE model of fluid-filled sandwich beams was established to characterize the overall structural response of fluid-filled sandwich beams. • Dependence of permanent mid-span deflection upon fluid filling and sealing material was quantified numerically. The effect of fluid filling on the dynamic response of corrugated sandwich beams under simulated blast loading with close-celled metallic foam projectile was systematically investigated. Deformation and failure modes as well as displacement/contact force/energy absorption histories of water-filled sandwich beams were obtained at different impact levels and compared with those of empty sandwich beams. Subsequently, a combined smoothed particle hydrodynamics-finite element (SPH-FE) model was employed to simulate the dynamic responses of water-filled sandwich beams, explore the underlying mechanisms, and assess the influence of fluid-filling and sealing material on permanent beam deflection. Good agreement was achieved between numerical simulations and experimental measurements. Under impact loading, the filled liquid provides strong interaction between fluid and sandwich components owing to its inertia and incompressibility. Fluid-filling led to not only significantly reduced permanent deflection of both face sheets but also considerably enhanced resistance of the corrugated core against plastic buckling and progressive folding [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]