Abstract
The paper presents results of a parametric study into energy absorption capability of thin-walled square section columns with redrawn dents, subjected to axial impact compressive load. Thin-walled aluminum tubes with four dents in the corners were under investigation. The varying parameters were the dent’s depth and distance of the dent to the base. The study was performed using Finite Element numerical code. Three crashworthiness indicators were examined: peak crushing force, crash load efficiency and stroke efficiency. The numerical results are shown in load-shortening diagrams, as well as diagrams and maps of crashworthiness indicators. It was found, that the main factor influencing a crushing mode and, subsequently, energy absorption capability, is a dent depth. The dent distance from the base is of less importance. Also a position of a dent, either at the bottom, or at the top base (the load application point) does not influence the crushing behavior significantly. For the deepest dents the relative increase of crash load efficiency (CLE) amounts 25% in comparison with the column without dents.
Highlights
Increasing number of impacting events of many types like traffic accidents, collisions of ships or collisions of a ship either with an iceberg or ship grounding on a narrow rock, etc. induced the rapid development of the impact crashworthiness dealing with research into impact engineering problems, in the field of dynamic response of structures in the plastic range and the design of energy absorbers
In the early sixties of the 20th century, automotive safety regulations stimulated the development of the new concept of a crashworthy vehicle that had to fulfil the integrity and impact energy management requirements [2]
The paper reported the results of a parametric study into the energy absorption capability of thin-walled square section columns with dents
Summary
Increasing number of impacting events of many types like traffic accidents, collisions of ships or collisions of a ship either with an iceberg or ship grounding on a narrow rock, etc. induced the rapid development of the impact crashworthiness dealing with research into impact engineering problems, in the field of dynamic response of structures in the plastic range and the design of energy absorbers. Have increased substantially in the last few decades, a new challenge appeared to design special structural members which would dissipate the impact energy in order to limit the deceleration and to stop a moveable mass (e.g. vehicle) in a controlled manner. There are steel drums, thin tubes or multi-corner columns subject to compression, compressed frusta (truncated circular cones), simple struts under compression, sandwich plates or beams ( honeycomb cells) and many others Among all those design solutions, mentioned above, thin-walled metal tubes are widely used as energy absorption systems in automotive industry due to their high energy absorption capability, easy to fabricate, relatively low price and sustainability at collapse. There are numerous published results of research concerning energy absorption of thin-walled tubes [2,4,6], few deal with tubular structures with dents or other flaws
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