Manufacturing and Mechanical Characterization of Metal-Polymer-Metal Sandwich Composites.

Abstract

Metal-polymer-metal (MPM) sandwich composite consists of two or more metal sheets laminated hot pressed layer by layer with low strength of polymer material. To achieve enhanced mechanical properties of MPM materials exhibits high stiffness and strength, light weight, high plasticity, fire and vibration damping resistance. The general objective of this thesis is to manufacturing and experimental test to investigate mechanical properties of AA6061/HDPE/AA6061 sandwich sheets. Sandwich composite materials can be used in aeronautical, marine, automobile body, outer body of machines, refrigerator and air condition bodies, electrical device, house roofing and construction industrial applications. These materials help to reduce fuel consumption due to light weight and structural vibration damping resistance respectively. The significance of this study is to manufacture MPM sandwich material and introduce in Ethiopian industry as it is a new technology from advanced composite materials. This leads to increasing numbers of applications MPM composites for primary structural components. Three kinds of AA6061/HDPE/AA6061 sandwich sheet depend on the thicknesses of core materials will be prepared by the hot pressing method. Mechanical properties of three kinds sandwich sheets are investigated by conducting experimental tests, such as; tensile, hardness and density tests. Three-point bending, tensile strength, impact force and cohesive zone model for three kinds of sandwich sheets were analyses using ANSYS Workbench. For the present study high density polyethylene (HDPE) it was observed that the fabricated MPM sandwich composite materials were exhibiting better mechanical properties of these materials. By increasing the core thickness, the mechanical properties use improved.