Composite structural panel and process of making

A process for the production of a self-supporting composite structural panel comprising,

• a. preforming a thin-walled large area, open top, metallic trough having a depth substantially the thickness of the panel to be produced and having openings in the bottom of the trough;
• b. depositing the trough in a mold having apertures in the bottom thereof;
• c. aligning the openings in the bottom of the trough with the apertures in the bottom of the mold;
• d. introducing a plastic-like, hardenable, pourable material into the trough in an amount slightly less than the volume of the trough cavity;
• e. extending impressing tools into the material through the apertures in the bottom of the mold and openings in the bottom of the trough;
• f. retracting the impressing tools from the material while the pourable material is being hardened to thereby form cavities in the pourable material to obtain the desired volume;
• and
• g. allowing the pourable material to harden within the trough in such a manner that it forms a composite with the trough, whereby the trough becomes an externally disposed reinforcement for the panel.

A process for the production of a self-supporting composite structural panel comprising,

• a. preforming a thin-walled large area, open top, metallic trough having a depth substantially the thickness of the panel to be produced and having openings in the bottom of the trough;
• b. depositing the trough in a mold having apertures in the bottom thereof;
• c. aligning the openings in the bottom of the trough with the apertures in the bottom of the mold;
• d. introducing a plastic-like, hardenable, pourable material into the trough in a slight excess of the volume of the trough cavity;
• e. compressing the pourable material in the trough to squeeze out excess material through the openings in the bottom of the trough and the apertures in the bottom of the mold to thereby obtain the desired volume;
• and
• f. applying heat to the pourable material to harden the pourable material within the trough in such a manner that it forms a composite with the trough, whereby the trough becomes an externally disposed reinforcement for the panel.