Metal foams are engineered materials with attractive mechanical properties such as lightness, energy dissipation capacity, high resistance and stiffness. To date, the applications of these materials are mainly limited to aeronautic and mechanical engineering. However, their features can provide significant advantages also for the development of new products for structures and infrastructures in the field of civil engineering. This consideration has motivated the study described in this paper, which is mainly devoted to assessing the performance of double-skin composite sandwich panels made of steel sheets and aluminium foam to be used as the deck in civil structures. To this aim, as the first step of ongoing research activity, both experimental and finite element (FE) simulations are carried out verifying the applicability of the proposed type of sandwich panel. Both tests on material specimens and three-point bending tests on the double-skin composite sandwich panels are performed, and the main results are discussed. FE analyses are carried out enlarging the range of investigated and monitored parameters assessing their influence on the bending and shear response of the panels. The outcomes of the study show the effectiveness of the proposed type of sandwich panel and allow selecting the most effective type of adhesive to bond the steel plates to the aluminium foam core. The obtained results are complemented with simple design equations that allow satisfactorily predicting both stiffness and strength of the sandwich panels.

金属泡沫是一种工程材料，具有引人注目的机械性能，例如重量轻，能量耗散能力，高强度和刚度。迄今为止，这些材料的应用主要限于航空和机械工程。但是，它们的功能还可以为土木工程领域中用于结构和基础设施的新产品的开发提供显着的优势。这种考虑激发了本文所述的研究，该研究主要致力于评估由钢板和泡沫铝制成的双层复合夹芯板的性能，以用作民用建筑的甲板。为此，作为正在进行的研究活动的第一步，进行了实验和有限元（FE）仿真，以验证所提出的夹心板类型的适用性。进行了材料样本测试和双层复合材料夹芯板上的三点弯曲测试，并讨论了主要结果。进行有限元分析，扩大研究和监测参数的范围，评估它们对面板弯曲和剪切响应的影响。研究结果表明了所提出的夹心板类型的有效性，并允许选择最有效的胶粘剂类型，以将钢板粘结到泡沫铝芯上。获得的结果与简单的设计方程式相辅相成，该方程式可以令人满意地预测夹芯板的刚度和强度。进行了材料样本测试和双层复合材料夹芯板上的三点弯曲测试，并讨论了主要结果。进行有限元分析，扩大研究和监测参数的范围，评估它们对面板弯曲和剪切响应的影响。研究结果表明了所提出的夹心板类型的有效性，并允许选择最有效的胶粘剂类型，以将钢板粘结到泡沫铝芯上。获得的结果与简单的设计方程式相辅相成，该方程式可以令人满意地预测夹芯板的刚度和强度。进行了材料样本测试和双层复合材料夹芯板的三点弯曲测试，并讨论了主要结果。进行有限元分析，扩大研究和监测参数的范围，评估它们对面板弯曲和剪切响应的影响。研究结果表明了所提出的夹心板类型的有效性，并允许选择最有效的胶粘剂类型，以将钢板粘结到泡沫铝芯上。获得的结果与简单的设计方程式相辅相成，该方程式可以令人满意地预测夹芯板的刚度和强度。进行有限元分析，扩大研究和监测参数的范围，评估它们对面板弯曲和剪切响应的影响。研究结果表明了所提出的夹心板类型的有效性，并允许选择最有效的胶粘剂类型，以将钢板粘结到泡沫铝芯上。获得的结果与简单的设计方程式相辅相成，该方程式可以令人满意地预测夹芯板的刚度和强度。进行有限元分析，扩大研究和监测参数的范围，评估它们对面板弯曲和剪切响应的影响。研究结果表明了所提出的夹心板类型的有效性，并允许选择最有效的胶粘剂类型，以将钢板粘结到泡沫铝芯上。获得的结果与简单的设计方程式相辅相成，该方程式可以令人满意地预测夹芯板的刚度和强度。