scale effects before testing

huangyhg

scale effects before testing
hi !
i'm just about to design some smaller specimens in order to validate my calculations on a bigger fiber reinforced polymers(frp) sabdwich bridge deck. my materials are glass fiber as faces and balsa as core. my question: where do i get additional information about how to design a smaller deck while taking into account the stress states in the real bigger construction ? i know the dimensions and stress state of the real construction.
thanks
patrice

this is difficult to do with a high comfort level of accuracy.  composites often combine materials that exhibit non-linear behavior or 2nd order effects with more linearly predictable materials.  the result in full scale is usually desirable, but as we reduce the scale (if you are considering a true scaling of all dimensions/parameters)the individual affects become more pronounced.
i would suggest a smaller piece of the structure, but maintain full scale.  restraint conditions are usually easier to accomodate than scaling issues.
ron
hi ron !
thanks for your suggestion. i'll try the smaller piece of structure with maintained full scale using fem first.
patrice