Crashworthiness analysis of circumferential sinusoidal hierarchical tubes (CSHTs): Experiment, simulation and theoretical prediction
Zi Yang, Shuguang Yao, Chengxing Yang
Abstract
Many hierarchical structures have good mechanical properties, which can better improve the energy absorption characteristics and achieve lightweight. This article proposed a novel circumferential sinusoidal hierarchical tube (CSHT). Experiments and numerical simulation were used to analyze the energy absorption performance of CSHTs. There were four deformation modes: ordered progressive extensional mode (OPEM), ordered progressive in-extensional mode (OPIM), mixed mode (MM) and contraction mode (CM), among which OPEM and OPIM were more ideal. Geometric parameters could significantly affect the crashworthiness of CSHTs. The amplitude (A) and the number of waves (N) changed the cross-section shape to adjust the crashworthiness of CSHTs, while increasing the wall thickness (T) enhanced the strength of CSHTs and thus changed the energy absorption. Most of the deformation modes of CSHTs were orderly progressive mode with good stability, and the maximum value of SEA reached 18.95 kJ/kg, which was 106% higher than the minimum value. Finally, the mean crushing force was theoretically predicted based on the Simplified Super Folding Element (SSFE) theory. The deformation mode was OPEM when the values of A and N were small, and the predictions were in good agreement with the simulation results.