Trade-offs in Geometry Optimisation of Aluminium Honeycomb Sandwich Panels: Vibration Attenuation versus Strength Reduction

Abstract

Aluminium honeycomb sandwich panels (AHSPs) are employed across various industries including aviation, defence, transportation, construction, and marine applications, where they frequently experience dynamic loading conditions. Understanding the dynamic characteristics of these panels and their response to dynamic loading is vital for engineering design under specific constraints. High-amplitude unwanted vibrations shorten service life, cause fatigue, and adversely affect both the durability and reliability of structural systems. Acceleration amplitude attenuation can be achieved through various methods, one of which is geometry optimisation when material replacement options are limited. Whilst it is often possible to attenuate high acceleration amplitudes through geometry optimisation, the resulting geometry may adversely affect the strength properties. In this study, geometry optimisation that also considers the strength properties of AHSPs is performed using an experimentally validated computational model. Furthermore, changes in strength properties and total mass resulting from acceleration amplitude attenuation are examined, and the associated trade-offs are discussed. The optimisation successfully reduced acceleration amplitudes by orders of magnitude and mass by 21%; however, this came at the cost of a 92% reduction in load-carrying capacity, starkly illustrating the critical trade-off between dynamic and static performance.