honeycomb
A honeycomb is a cell of a pattern of two-dimensionally arranged hexagonal cavities. In a narrower sense, it is understood to mean parts of their nests made of wax by honey bees , which are used to raise the brood and store food ( honey and pollen ) - see honeycomb .
Also bees build honeycombs, but they are not built such a regular basis as those of bees. Real wasps stick together fibers from weathered wood to a kind of paper - they are therefore also called "paper wasps" -; these constructions are also called honeycombs.
Of all possible cell shapes that can be lined up without gaps, hexagonal ones have the best ratio of wall material to volume , they represent an optimal shape in this regard . For this reason, hexagonal shapes are also used in technology, for example to stabilize lightweight constructions (most economical distribution of the reinforced areas) , for example with structured sheets .
A sandwich panel with a honeycomb core has a honeycomb support core between the flat outer surfaces, for example made of Nomex paper or plastics (e.g. polypropylene). The upright honeycomb structures used as the core material in composite materials , but also cardboard boxes, are used for lightweight construction (e.g. aircraft construction ) or for thermal insulation.
Applications for open honeycomb structures are
- Catalysts in which fluids are to be brought into good, extensive contact with the expensive catalyst surface
- Heat exchangers ( rotary heat exchangers and to enlarge the surface of cooling registers , water coolers and radiators )
- Light attachments; here they are used for directed light emission
- mirror
- End grain floor
Further areas of application for the honeycomb structure are
- Cellular technology , as radio cells
- Deformation technique for fracture patterns
- Lecture technique, for creating planar relationships
