Corrugated Wood Composite Panels For Structural Decking

quantify the relative molding difficulty of corrugated profiles considered in this research.The details of the MF calculations are listed in Appendix B. MF of 1 represents themolding of a flat panel and a MF of 3 represents a relatively difficult to mold section.Sensitivity studies of MF were conducted using the same baseline panel used in thesensitivity studies of relative bending performance. The results of MF sensitivity studiesfor the four geometric variables are shown in Figure 4.Channel depth and sidewall angle have the most impact on the moldability.Increasing the channel depth from ¼” to 3” and the sidewall angle from 20 degrees to 70degrees raises MF values from 1.16 to 1.84 and 1.12 to 1.88, respectively. A corrugatedpanel with either a 3” channel depth or a 70 degree sidewall angle is a relatively difficultto mold section.Figure 4 shows that MF is inversely proportional to wavelength. Increasing thespacing of the channels can ease the molding difficulty since the mat interactionsbetween adjacent channels will be reduced. Hence, longer wavelength has the advantageof producing an easier to mold section. Nevertheless, longer wavelength also creates adisadvantage because the underlayment will be required to span across a larger deckopening. The advantage and disadvantage of longer wavelength must be consideredcarefully in the process of choosing a corrugated section for molding trials.Panel thickness has the least effect on the moldability of corrugated panels.Varying the thickness of the baseline panel from ¼” to 1” thick does not greatly changethe moldability (1.366 to 1.374). This suggests that choosing a suitable panel thicknesscan be based almost entirely on the structural performance and compatibility with currentconstruction practices.14