Low Velocity Impact Testing of Ice on Steel and Composite Specimen

Abstract

This study investigates the differences in low-velocity impact response between steel and composite sandwich structure using a customized ice impactor. Different combinations of freezing temperature and duration are used to create the ice impactors. Ice impactors that are frozen at -12ËšC for 48 hours are found to have the least damage from visual observation after low-velocity impact tests on A516 carbon steel. Subsequently, carbon fiber reinforced composite sandwich panels are subjected to the ice impacts. X-ray micro-computed tomography is utilized to reveal any potential inner damage of the composite structure. Different fracture mechanisms of ice are observed for different targets- full damage of ice is more evident for composite specimens while partially damaged ice is dominant in steel specimens. Though higher peak forces value is noticed from the ice-steel interaction, much energy is absorbed in composites during impact testing. Discrepancies in displacement of the ice impactors with test duration are also observed with the variation of the targets. Furthermore, size and dimension of the broken pieces of ice impactors vary according to the targets. This research will further enhance the knowledge in understanding low-velocity ice impact on composite sandwich panel in extremely low-temperature Arctic conditions.