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Article: Polymer & Steel "Sandwich Plate System" Creates Breakthrough Structural Design & Repair Opportunities.
- Article from:
- Advanced Materials & Composites News
- Article date:
- July 7, 2003
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2003 Composites Worldwide, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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By Ed Sullivan, technical writer based in Hermosa Beach, California [w/edits]
July 7, 2003 - If you inspect the deck of a ship made of stiffened steel panels, it will eventually begin to take on a gaunt appearance, as the stiffeners begin to protrude like ribs through the thinning and warped plated surface. The same problems occur wherever stiffened steel plating is subjected to heavy wear, such as road bridges. Under the continuous stress of jarring impacts, metal fatigue occurs, causing surface plate to sag across the steel stiffeners, giving the deck a warped or corrugated appearance. These damaged surfaces reduce the overall strength of the structure and ...