Characterization and Modelling of the Mechanical and Acoustical Properties of a Pvc Rigid Foam

Closed‐cell cross‐linked PVC foams display high specific strength and stiffness and are frequently used as core of light‐weight sandwich structures, such as inner aircrafts panels. The compressive behaviour of a commercially available foam was investigated under both static and dynamic conditions. An ad‐hoc apparatus was used to obtain tomographic reconstructions during compression; 2D and 3D Digital Image Correlation techniques were used to investigate the topology of the complex microstructure and strain localization phenomena. Finally, a numerical model based on dynamic data was used to predict acoustical damping characteristics of a composite panel made by PVC foam core and aluminium skins.