ENERGY ABSORPTION CHARACTERISTICS IN SQUARE OR CIRCULAR SHAPED ALUMINUM/CFRP COMPOUND TUBES UNDER AXIAL COMPRESSION

摘要

With the respective collapse characteristics of aluminum and CFRP (Carbon Fiber Reinforced Plastics) tubes in mind, axial collapse tests were performed for aluminum/CFRP compound tubes, which are composed of square or circular shaped aluminum tubes wrapped with CFRP outside. In this study, the collapse modes and the energy absorption characteristics were analyzed for aluminum/CFRP compound tubes which have different fiber orientation angle of CFRP. Fracture modes in the aluminum/CFRP compound tubes were rather stable than those in the CFRP tubes alone, probably due to the ductile nature of the inner aluminum tubes. The absorbed energy per unit volume of the aluminum or the aluminum/CFRP compound tubes was higher than that of CFRP tubes. Meanwhile, the absorbed energy per unit mass, for the light-weight design aspect was higher in the aluminum/CFRP compound tubes than in the aluminum tubes or the CFRP tubes. The energy absorption turned out to be higher in circular tubes than in square tubes. Beside the collapse modes and the energy absorption characteristics were influenced by the orientation angle, and the compound tubes took the most effective energy absorption when the fiber orientation angle of CFRP was 90 degrees.