Proof test methodology for reducing the risk of unvented honeycomb core failures in aerospace structures

The trapped air in unvented honeycomb core and the surrounding environment can induce a pressure differential across the facesheet during launch ascent. Combined with the presence of a defect, the pressure differential across a facesheet in combination with external loads can cause facesheet failure or unstable facesheet debond growth. While honeycomb core venting is the recommended solution, there might be practical limitations in implementing this solution or the possibility that a structure intended to be vented is partially unvented due to manufacturing issues. A methodology for accepting composite sandwich structures for space applications is presented, which heavily relies on the building block approach to characterize the facesheet strength and interfacial fracture toughness. To demonstrate the approach, an allowable flaw size is defined for a hypothetical flight condition using analyses anchored to subscale tests.