Jute/PP composites for covering honeycomb panels: Designability and mechanical behaviors

An approach involving low energy consumption was used to transform jute/polypropylene prepregs into a sustainable sandwich structure for automotive application. Fiber orientation and stacking sequence were modified to investigate their influence on the physical-mechanical properties of the prepregs as well as cyclic flexural properties, compression fatigue behaviors and 3D microstructure of honeycomb sandwich panels. The mechanical properties of the face sheets were comparable with GF-SMC; but since they are derived from natural fiber they present a more sustainable and renewable alternative to GF-SMC. Stacking sequence and fiber orientation were found remarkably factors for the limitation of structure and performance design. The honeycomb panels occurred fatigue failures under the compression cyclic loading for 131–547 times. The flexural and shear buckling modes correlated with each other and all the materials failed in a combination of face wrinkling, partial crushing and debonding. It was found that the prepregs could provide more possibilities for optimum structural design of honeycomb sandwich panels, benefiting for the applications in the automotive lightweight field.