Experimental study on hollow section joints under impact loading

Steel sections with four different joint types, subjected to sudden impact, are investigated in this study. A drop weight test setup was developed for this purpose. Impact tests were performed for two different energy levels. Acceleration-time, displacement-time, impact load-time, and impact load-displacement graphs were developed and presented. It was established that the behaviour of test specimens is affected by joint types and impact energy applied. Failure damage situation occurs earlier when rigidity of specimens decreases and when higher level of impact energy is applied.