Axial quasi-static crushing of composite tubes: An investigation on the influence of the modeling techniques

Abstract

Carbon fiber-reinforced plastic (CFRP) composites perform remarkably as crashworthy structures in transport vehicles. They promise to improve the crashworthiness of vehicles in addition to weight savings thanks to their superior strength-to-weight ratio. However, designing composite crashworthy structures is challenging since predicting the energy absorption values and crushing behavior are not straightforward. Finite element modeling is a very effective numerical technique to predict energy absorption values and shorten the design process of composite structures, yet it is also quite hard to simulate the crushing of composite structures due to their complex damage mechanisms. This paper presents an investigation of the axial crushing behavior of composite tubes made of woven fabric CFRP and the influence of the different modeling techniques. Macro-scale stacked shell modeling approach is adopted to model the composite tubes. Various virtual debris wedge models are incorporated to obtain realistic failure modes in simulations. Simulated crushing morphologies and energy absorption values are compared with the experimental test results. Furthermore, the prediction capability of the models and the influence of mesh geometry used for rigid flat platen crushers are examined. It is found that the geometry of the virtual debris wedge and mesh geometry of the flat platen crusher affect the simulated crushing modes and level of the absorbed energy predicted.