Crashworthiness characteristic of aluminum/composite hybrid tubes under axial compression
Willy Artha Wirawan, A’yan Sabitah, Gunawan Sakti, Bambang Bagus Harianto, Moch. Agus Choiron, R.A. Ilyas, S.M. Sapuan, Joewono Prasetijo
Abstract
• The material functional properties of the hybrid tube Aluminium Circle Tube (ACT) and Composite Circle Tube (CCT). • Revealing failure mechanisms and hybridization effects of composite layer of reinforcement under axial loading. • Hybrid tubes show a 49.18% and 43.78% increase in energy absorption with outer and inner fiber reinforcement. • Progressive folding and the discovery of unique Curling and Corkscrew patterns of Hybrid Tube. • Hybrid tubes are suitable for high-energy absorption applications in the automotive and aerospace industries. This study investigates the crashworthiness performance and energy absorption characteristics of circular aluminium-composite hybrid tubes reinforced with layers of waru bark fiber. Four tube configurations were fabricated: Aluminium Circular Tube (ACT), Composite Circular Tube (CCT), Hybrid Inner Circular Tube (HICT), and Hybrid Outer Circular Tube (HOCT). These tubes were subjected to quasi-static axial loading tests. The reinforcement layers, orientated at 0°–90°, were bonded using epoxy resin. Experimental results revealed that the addition of reinforcement layers introduced new progressive crushing behaviours, including internal curling and corkscrew patterns, which effectively mitigated buckling failure. The hybrid designs demonstrated substantial improvements in energy absorption, with increases of 49.18% for HOCT and 43.78% for HICT compared to the unreinforced ACT. Among all configurations, the HOCT exhibited the best crashworthiness performance, achieving a peak crushing force (IPFC) of 42.36 kN, a mean force (MF) of 24.66 kN, and a crush force efficiency (CFE) of 0.49. However, the specific energy absorption (SEA) decreased with increasing tube diameter and reinforcement density. These findings offer valuable insights into the design optimisation of reinforced composite tubes, emphasising their potential for advanced crashworthy applications and energy absorption systems.