Designation: C 273 – 00e1

Standard Test Method for

Shear Properties of Sandwich Core Materials1
This standard is issued under the fixed designation C 273; the number immediately following the designation indicates the year of
original adoption or, in the case of revision, the year of last revision. A number in parentheses indicates the year of last reapproval. A
superscript epsilon (e) indicates an editorial change since the last revision or reapproval.

This standard has been approved for use by agencies of the Department of Defense.
--`-`-`,,`,,`,`,,`---

e1 NOTE—In 5.3, the value 6 000 000 lb-in.2/in. was editorially corrected to 600 000 lb-in.2/in. in July 2000.

1. Scope length is prescribed so that secondary stresses have a minimum

1.1 This test method covers the determination of shear effect. Approximate shear properties can also be obtained from
properties of sandwich construction core materials associated a sandwich flexure test (see Test Method C 393).
with shear distortion of planes parallel to the facings. It covers 3.3 This test method provides a standard method of obtain-
the determination of shear strength parallel to the plane of the ing sandwich core shear data for quality control, acceptance
sandwich, and the shear modulus associated with strains in a specification testing, sandwich design, and research and devel-
plane normal to the facings. The test may be conducted on core opment.
materials bonded directly to the loading plates or the sandwich 4. Apparatus
facings bonded to the plates.
1.2 The values stated in SI units are to be regarded as the 4.1 Test Machine, capable of maintaining a controlled load-
standard. The inch-pound units given may be approximate. ing rate and indicating the load with an accuracy of 61 % of
1.3 This standard does not purport to address all of the the indicated value. The accuracy of the test machine shall be
safety concerns, if any, associated with its use. It is the verified in accordance with Practices E 4.
responsibility of the user of this standard to establish appro- 4.2 Deflectometer, compressometer, or extensometer, ca-
priate safety and health practices and determine the applica- pable of measuring the displacement with a precision of at least
bility of regulatory limitations prior to use. 61 %.
4.3 Micrometer, gage, or caliper, capable of measuring
2. Referenced Documents accurately to 0.025 mm (0.001 in.).
2.1 ASTM Standards: 5. Test Specimens
C 393 Test Method for Flexural Properties of Flat Sandwich
Constructions2 5.1 The test specimen shall have a thickness equal to the
C 394 Test Method for Shear Fatigue of Sandwich Core thickness of the sandwich, a width not less than 50 mm (2 in.),
Materials2 and a length not less than twelve times the thickness, except as
E 4 Practices for Force Verification of Testing Machines3 agreed upon by the purchaser and the seller.
5.2 Measure the thickness to the nearest 0.025 mm (0.001
3. Significance and Use in.) and the length and width to the nearest 0.25 mm (0.01 in.).
3.1 The core shear properties are fundamental properties Weigh the specimen to the nearest 0.1 g and calculate the
that are used in the design of sandwich panels. This test method specimen density.
provides information on the load-deflection behavior of sand- 5.3 The test specimen shall be rigidly supported by means
wich constructions or cores when loaded in shear parallel to the of steel plates bonded to the facings (Note 1) as shown in Fig.
plane of the facings. From a complete load-deflection curve, it 1. The thickness of the plates may be varied in accordance with
is possible to compute core shear stress at any load (such as the the strength of the sandwich, but the plate length shall be such
shear stress at proportional limit, at yield, or at maximum load) that the line of action of the direct tensile or compressive force
and to compute an effective core shear modulus. shall pass through the diagonally opposite corners of the
3.2 The test does not produce pure shear, but the specimen sandwich as shown in Fig. 1. A correct line of load action may
also be obtained by modifying the core length to thickness ratio
1
provided the requirements in 5.1 are fulfulled. It has been
This test method is under the jurisdiction of ASTM Committee D-30 on
Composite Materials and is the direct responsibility of Subcommittee D30.09 on found that loading plates having a bending stiffness per unit
Sandwich Construction. width, D = EI/b, not less than 2.67 MN - mm2/mm width per
Current edition approved Jan. 10, 2000. Published March 2000. Originally millimetre of core thickness (600 000 lb-in.2/in. per inch of
published as C 273 – 51T. Last previous edition C 273 – 94.
2
Annual Book of ASTM Standards, Vol 15.03.
core thickness) have performed satisfactorily.
3
Annual Book of ASTM Standards, Vol 03.01. 5.4 If the core material shows directional characteristics

Copyright © ASTM, 100 Barr Harbor Drive, West Conshohocken, PA 19428-2959, United States.

Copyright ASTM International

1
Provided by IHS under license with ASTM
No reproduction or networking permitted without license from IHS Not for Resale
 C 273
plate adhesive or adhesion failures to the core or plates should
be rejected. The thickness of the adhesive bond to honeycomb
core (adhesive-filled depth into the honeycomb core cells) may
affect the core shear strength and modulus values depending on
the core thickness.
7.3 Data for load-deflection curves may be used to deter-
mine the effective shear modulus of the core material. Measure
the relative displacement between the steel plates by means of
transducers, compressometers or extensometers. The displace-
ment apparatus can be on the specimen side or on the back, and
it shall be as close to the center as possible.
8. Calculation
8.1 Calculate the shear stress as follows:
P
t5Lb (1)

where:
t = core shear stress, MPa (psi);
P = load on specimen, N (lb);
L = length of specimen, mm (in.); and
b = width of specimen, mm (in.).
8.2 Obtain the ultimate shear strength using Eq 1 when P
equals the maximum load and the shear yield strength where P
equals the yield load. For core materials that yield more than
2 % strain, use the 2 % offset method for the yield strength.
8.3 Calculate the shear modulus as follows:
St
FIG. 1 Plate Shear Specimens, Load Line of Action G5Lb (2)

with respect to shear strength, separate tests shall be made to

obtain shear stresses in each of the principal directions. where:
G = core shear modulus, MPa (psi);
NOTE 1—To ensure a core shear failure on some honeycomb cores, two
S = DP/Du, slope of initial portion of load-deflection
plies of adhesive must be used to bond the honeycomb to the steel plates.
This provides deeper adhesive fillets on the honeycomb cell walls. curve, N/mm (lb/in.);
u = displacement of loading plates; and
6. Conditioning t = thickness of core, mm (in.).
6.1 When the physical properties of the component materi- 9. Report
als are affected by moisture, bring the test specimens to
constant weight (61 %) before testing, preferably in a condi- 9.1 The report shall include the following:
tioning room with temperature and humidity control, and make 9.1.1 Mode of testing; tension or compression,
the shear tests, preferably, in a room under the same conditions. 9.1.2 Description of test specimens; core material, facings if
A temperature of 23 6 3°C (73 6 5°F) and a relative humidity used,
of 50 6 5 % are recommended. 9.1.3 Dimensions of the test specimens, core orientation,
9.1.4 Method of bonding specimen to plates; adhesive, cure
7. Procedure cycle, and pressure,
7.1 Apply the load to the ends of the rigid plates in 9.1.5 Specimens conditioning, if any,
compression or tension through a spherical bearing block or a 9.1.6 Test temperature and specimens time at temperature,
universal joint so as to distribute the load uniformly across the 9.1.7 Test machine cross-head loading rate,
width of the specimen (Fig. 2 and Fig. 3). The tensile shear 9.1.8 Shear strength; individual values and average,
plates can be attached with bolts or pins to the loading fixture. 9.1.9 Shear modulus; individual values and average,
Apply the load at a constant rate of movement of the testing 9.1.10 Load-deflection curves, if required, and
machine cross-head at such a rate that the maximum load will 9.1.11 Description of failure mode; whether core, adhesive,
occur within 3 to 6 min (Note 2). or bond failure occurred.

NOTE 2—A suggested rate of cross-head movement is 0.50 mm/min 10. Precision and Bias
(0.020 in./min). 10.1 Precision—The precision of the procedure in Test
7.2 The failure mode desired is a 100 % shear failure of the Method C 273 for measuring sandwich core material shear
core. Specimens that exhibit cohesive failures of the core-to- properties is not available.
--`-`-`,,`,,`,`,,`---

Copyright ASTM International

2
Provided by IHS under license with ASTM
No reproduction or networking permitted without license from IHS Not for Resale
 C 273

--`-`-`,,`,,`,`,,`---
(a) Bolted Specimen (b) Pinned Specimen
FIG. 2 Tensile Plate Shear Tests

10.2 Bias—Since there is no accepted reference material 11. Keywords

suitable for determining the bias for the procedures in this test
11.1 sandwich core; shear; shear modulus; shear strength
method, bias has not been determined.

Copyright ASTM International

3
Provided by IHS under license with ASTM
No reproduction or networking permitted without license from IHS Not for Resale
 C 273

FIG. 3 Compressive Plate Shear Test

The American Society for Testing and Materials takes no position respecting the validity of any patent rights asserted in connection
with any item mentioned in this standard. Users of this standard are expressly advised that determination of the validity of any such
patent rights, and the risk of infringement of such rights, are entirely their own responsibility.

This standard is subject to revision at any time by the responsible technical committee and must be reviewed every five years and
if not revised, either reapproved or withdrawn. Your comments are invited either for revision of this standard or for additional standards
and should be addressed to ASTM Headquarters. Your comments will receive careful consideration at a meeting of the responsible
technical committee, which you may attend. If you feel that your comments have not received a fair hearing you should make your
views known to the ASTM Committee on Standards, at the address shown below.

This standard is copyrighted by ASTM, 100 Barr Harbor Drive, PO Box C700, West Conshohocken, PA 19428-2959, United States.
Individual reprints (single or multiple copies) of this standard may be obtained by contacting ASTM at the above address or at
610-832-9585 (phone), 610-832-9555 (fax), or [email protected] (e-mail); or through the ASTM website (www.astm.org).

--`-`-`,,`,,`,`,,`---

Copyright ASTM International

4
Provided by IHS under license with ASTM
No reproduction or networking permitted without license from IHS Not for Resale