Sandwich panels as bracing diaphragm and load bearing wall

Traditionally, are structural components for wall cladding and roof covering of a building. They are mounted on a load-bearing substructure. Thus, they are considered as secondary structural component of a building and are classified as self-supporting structural members. Statically, they act as single or multi span beams. They transfer self-weight and external loads from wind and snow to the substructure. Only bending moments and shear forces occur. When the conventional bracing members are missing, the sandwich elements are subjected additionally to loads in the plane of the panel. On the one hand they serve in vertical direction as load bearing wall, on the other hand they stabilize the building against horizontal loads. This load-bearing behaviour was investigated in axial load and wall racking tests at iS-mainz.