Plywood Experimental Investigation and Modeling Approach for Static and Dynamic Structural Applications
Abstract
Although the mechanical behavior of various types of laminated wood has been already explored in the literature [1, 2], there is still a lack about static and dynamic testing and modeling approaches of the plywood. This study aims to describe a plywood composed of 10 layers of beech glued together with a melamine-urea-formaldehyde resin. Tests were performed on samples from two wood boards with different stacking sequences. The experimental data presented are provided from tensile tests performed in both fiber and transverse directions, out of plane compression tests, as well as dynamic tests in particular the Taylor gun test and the Hopkinson bar. This paper proposes three models based on composite theories to simulate the static behavior of plywood. An application to the finite element method to simulate the static tensile and compression tests is presented. The comparisons between experimental data and the models’ results reveal that a plywood can be modeled as single block of a homogeneous anisotropic equivalent material whose properties are estimated following the rule of mixtures and classical laminate theory.