Experimental and numerical studies on failure and energy absorption of composite thin-walled square tubes under quasi-static compression loading

Abstract

Abstract To analysis the failure and energy absorption of carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) thin-walled square tube, the quasi-static axial compression loading tests are conducted for [±45]3s square tube, and the square tube after test is scanned to further investigate the failure mechanism. Three different finite element models, i.e. single-layer shell model, multi-layer shell model and stacked shell mode, are developed by using the Puck 2000 matrix failure criterion and Yamada Sun fiber failure criterion, and three models are verified and compared according to the experimental energy absorption metrics. The experimental and simulation results show that the failure mode of [±45]3s square tube is the local buckling failure mode, and the energy are absorbed mainly by intralaminar and interlaminar delamination, fiber elastic deformation, fiber debonding and fracture, matrix deformation cracking and longitudinal crack propagation. Three different finite element models can reproduce the collapse behaviours of [±45]3s square tube to some extent, but the stacked shell model can better reproduce the failure mode, and the difference of specific energy absorption (SEA) is minimum, which shows the numerical simulation results are in better agreement with the test results.