Performance Optimization of Auxetic Structures on Energy Absorption of Cylindrical Sandwich Using Taguchi and ANOVA Methods

Abstract

High engineering requirements of shock absorbers have increased interest in auxetic materials, which have higher specific energy absorption performance compared to conventional solid absorbers. Last decade, many optimization studies were conducted to improve the energy absorption performance of auxetic tubular structures. Most studies focused on adding inner and outer shells to thin-walled auxetic tubular absorbers with different types of lattice structures to enhance energy absorption of the cylindrical sandwiches. There are limited studies on thicker-walled auxetic tubes and their related shell thicknesses to optimize performance. In this study, the thickness of the thicker-walled auxetic core thickness (1.2 mm, 1.6 mm, 2 mm), shell thickness (16 mm, 20 mm, 24 mm), and auxetic lattice structure (Re-Entrant Circular, SiliComb, and ArrowHead) were optimized to improve the specific energy absorption of cylindrical sandwiches. The Taguchi method was used to determine the optimum parameters for cylindrical sandwiches. In addition, the effect ratio of the parameters on the specific energy absorption was investigated using the ANOVA method. The energy absorption properties of the cylindrical sandwiches were determined using the drop-weight test. The highest specific energy absorption was obtained using a shell thickness of 1.2 mm and a core thickness of 16 mm using an SiliComb lattice. It was determined that the lattice geometry was the most effective parameter on the specific energy absorption of cylindrical sandwiches, with an effect rate of 61.62%.