EFFECT OF FIBER ORIENTATION AND CROSS SECTION OF COMPOSITE TUBES ON THEIR ENERGY ABSORPTION ABILITY IN AXIAL DYNAMIC LOADING

The crushing behavior of composite tubes in axial impact loading is investigated. Tubes of circular and rectangular cross section are simulated using an LS-DYNA soft ware. The effect of fiber orientation on the energy absorbed in laminated composite tubes is also studied. The results obtained show that rectangular tubes absorb less energy than circular ones, and their maxi mum crushing load is also lower. The composite tubes with a [+theta/-theta] lay-up configuration absorb a minimum amount of energy at theta = 15 degrees. The simulation results for a rectangular composite tube with a [+30/-30] lay-up configuration are compared with avail able ex peri men tal data. Cylindrical composite tubes fabricated from woven glass/polyester composites with different lay-ups were also tested using a drop-weight impact tester, and very good agreement be tween experimental and numerical results is achieved.