In order to investigate the energy absorption characteristics of multi-cell polygonal tubes with different cross-sectional configurations,firstly,the theoretical formulae of the mean crushing force under axial load for four multi-cell polygonal tubes were derived by combining the Super Folding Element theory with Zhang’s research results.These formulae can be used to validate the numerical model and quickly evaluate the energy absorption ability of multi-cell polygonal tubes.Furthermore,a comparative study on the energy absorption performance of eight multi-cell polygonal tubes under axial and oblique loads was conducted.The results show that all tubes have a stable mixed deformation mode under axial load.The multi-cell decagon tube has better energy-absorption ability compared with other tubes.Whenθis less than 10°,all the tubes maintain a stable deformation mode,and the multi-cell decagon tube also has the biggest crushing force efficiency and specific energy absorption among these eight tubes;meanwhile compared with the results atθ=0°,the specific energy absorption of all tubes decreases by about 8%-21%,while the crushing force efficiency increases by 20%-56%.However,at large angles 20°and 30°,all of the tubes collapse in bending modes and lose their effectiveness at energy absorption.
A numerical study of bitubular tubes with diaphragms compared with single and bitubular tubes subjected to dynamic axial impact force was presented. At first, the energy absorption response of the composite structure under axial loading was analyzed by finite element simulation. The results show that the efficiency of energy absorption can be improved by introducing diaphragms to the double-walled columns. Then, the effect of the amount and location of diaphragms, the shape and the size of the inner tubes, and the thickness of the composite structures were also studied numerically. The collision performance of the composite structure is affected by the deformation of diaphragms, as well as the interaction of outer and inner tube. The non-uniform distribution of diaphragms can improve the energy absorption efficiency of structures for a constant number of diaphragms. The specific energy absorption of the hexagonal inner tube is the highest, followed by the circular, octagonal and square ones.
In order to improve the crashworthiness of thin-walled columns, the energy absorption characteristics of three columns under quasi-static axial crushing loads were analyzed through LS-DYNA. Numerical results show that the energy absorption capability of the bitubular hexagonal columns with middle to middle(MTM) ribs is the best, followed by the bitubular hexagonal columns with corner to corner(CTC) ribs and the bitubular hexagonal columns without(NOT) ribs, respectively. Then, the MTM rib was optimized by using multi-objective particle swarm optimization algorithm. Through the analysis of the Pareto front for specific energy absorption(SEA, A_(se)) and peak crushing force(PCF, F_(pc)), it is found that there is a vertex on the Pareto front. The vertex has the design parameters of t_1=1.2 mm, t_2=1.2 mm, A_(se)=11.3729 k J/kg, F_(pc)=235.8491 kN. When the PCF is in a certain size, on the left of the vertex, the point with t_2=1.2 mm has the biggest SEA, meanwhile on the right of the vertex, the point with t_1=1.2 mm has the biggest SEA. Finally, the global sensitivity analysis was conducted to investigate the effect of two design parameters. The result is obtained that both SEA and PCF for MTM are more sensitive to t_1 rather than t_2 in the design domain.
Tensile tests at different strain rates(0.0002, 0.002, 0.02, 1000 and 3000 s^(-1)) were carried out for 7N01 aluminum alloy. Low strain rate experiments(0.0002, 0.002 and 0.02 s^(-1)) were conducted using an electronic mechanical universal testing machine, while high strain rate experiments(1000, 3000 s^(-1)) were carried out through a split Hopkinson tensile bar. The experimental results showed that 7N01 aluminum alloy is strain rate sensitive. By introducing a correction scheme of the strain rate hardening coefficient, a modified Johnson–Cook model was proposed to describe the flow behaviors of 7N01 aluminum alloy. The proposed model fitted the experimental data better than the original Johnson–Cook model in plastic flow under dynamic condition. Numerical simulations of the dynamic tensile tests were performed using ABAQUS with the modified Johnson–Cook model. Digital image correlation was used together with high-speed photography to study the mechanical characters of specimen at high strain rate. Good correlations between the experiments results, numerical predictions and DIC results are achieved. High accuracy of the modified Johnson-Cook model was validated.
In order to reduce casualties and property losses in a collision accident, thin-walled structure has been extensively used as energy absorber in crashworthiness design of train. With the help of energy absorber, collision kinetic energy can be controllably dissipated by the plastic deformation of structures. A new kind of multi-cell thin-walled structure called as bitubular polygonal tubes with internal walls(BPTIW) was constructed. The crashworthiness characteristics of BPTIWs were investigated by LS-DYNA. It can be found that the BPTIW with 12 sides has the most excellent crashworthiness characteristics. Therefore, based on response surface method(RSM) and multiobjective particle optimization(MOPSO) algorithm, the BPTIW with 12 sides was selected to optimize the dimensions of cross-sectional configuration under different constraints of energy absorption(EA) and crushing peak force(CPF). The results show that the optimal designs of BPTIW12 under different constraints present excellent crashworthiness characteristics and can be used in the practical engineering.
