Experimental investigation of the axial crushing behavior of aluminum/CFRP hybrid tubes with circular-hole triggering mechanism

The current study investigates the axial crushing behavior of filament-wound aluminum/carbon fiber reinforced plastic (Al/CFRP) hybrid tubes with circular-hole triggering mechanism. The proposed hybrid design consists of an inner aluminum thin-walled tube and an outer composite winding of three plies having 30 degrees/-30 degrees /90 degrees angles. The diameter, number, and location of the triggering holes were chosen as design parameters, and Taguchi L9 orthogonal array experimental design was used to find the best configuration of design parameters. For the optimization of multiple responses, Additive Ratio Assessment (ARAS) has also been utilized along with mono-criteria optimization. The experimental results showed that the intact hybrid tube can absorb up to 50% higher crush energy compared with the sum of individual components of the structure. The progressive brittle fracture pattern accompanied by progressive local buckling mode exhibiting favorable energy absorption characteristics were observed in all triggered configurations. Analysis of variance results showed that the trigger location ratio has the most significant effect on the specific energy absorption while the hole diameter was the most significant factor in decreasing the peak crush force. The results revealed that the specific energy absorption and the crush force efficiency of the intact hybrid tubes can be enhanced up to 39.1% and 61.7%, respectively, by the use of optimal levels of design parameters.

Automated summary

This study investigates the behavior of filament-wound aluminum/carbon fiber reinforced plastic (Al/CFRP) hybrid tubes with circular-hole triggering mechanism during axial crushing. Experimental results show that the intact hybrid tube has higher crush energy absorption and efficiency compared to individual components of the structure.