Parametric Study on Mechanical Responses of Corrugated-Core Sandwich Panels for Bridge Decks

A critical challenge in bridge design and the construction process is to reduce the weight of the bridge deck. Specifically, in small aged bridges, light modules provide an easy and fast bridge deck renewal. Sandwich panels were introduced as such lightweight bridge decks a few decades ago. Low density and high specific strength of the panels provide remarkable advantages for a wide variety of industrial applications. The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of geometric parameters on the mechanical behavior (deflection and shear force) of a corrugated-core steel sandwich panel and predict its response by developing mathematical regression models. The results reveal that the core and the face sheet thicknesses highly affect the panel deflection response, whereas the weld spacing has the highest contribution to the maximum shear force response. (C) 2017 American Society of Civil Engineers.