Abstract: Planar structural element, as a portion of a foam block, the foam block being made of a foamed plastics material, containing a plurality of stacked foam bodies and/or foam bodies made of body segments, which are arranged next to one another in a plane and connected to one another to form foam bodies and which have flat weld seams at their abutting faces, and the foam bodies being welded to one another at their abutting faces with the formation of flat weld seams to form the foam block. The weld seams between the foam bodies are interrupted by recesses at a spacing from one another. The planar structural element is preferably used as the core or core layer in sandwich composites, for example in rotor vanes of wind power plants.

Abstract: Shaped articles made of balsa veneers, balsa chips, balsa strands or balsa strips, which are oriented in the same direction according to their grain direction, and the grain direction of the individual chips deviates by 0° to 30° from the direction of the axis of the grain. The spaces of the adjacent balsa veneers, chips, strands or strips are filled with a, for example foamed, adhesive, the density of which may be the same as or close to the density of the surrounding balsa wood.