Elastic behavior of corrugated cardboard: experiments and modeling

Motivated by computed homogeneous of linear corrugated cardboard behavior, an analytical model related to the assessment of equals behavior is proposed. This model takes into account the geometrical and mechanical properties of the corrugated cardboard constituents. An experimental methodology is also proposed to obtain both the in-plane elastic properties of each constituents and the corrugated cardboard. After model validation by a comparison with the experiment results, a parametric study is conducted studying the effect of geometrical parameters on in-plane elastic properties. Moreover, in order to assess the relevance of the homogenization method, a finite element model for three-point bending test is created. Two approaches are adopted: the first one models separately the core and liner of the corrugated cardboard with thin shell element (3D approach), whereas the second approach being of particular interest in this work, considers the corrugated cardboard sandwich as a homogeneous plate and modeled therefore by a plate elements. It is shown that the simplified homogenized procedure is adequately accurate and 10 times faster than the 3D approach for effectively analyzing corrugated cardboard panel in the preliminary and optimum design stages.