Crashworthiness of foam-filled thin-walled circular tubes under dynamic bending

The bending crashworthiness of empty and foam-filled thin-walled circular tubes was investigated through dynamic three-point bending experiments. Three types of tubular structures with different configurations, including empty tubes, foam-filled single tubes and foam-filled double tubes, were tested. The load-deformation characteristics, failure modes and energy absorption capacity of different structures under dynamic loading were investigated and compared with the results of quasi-static tests. Several key parameters related to their crashworthiness were evaluated, including the specific energy absorption and the energy-absorbing effectiveness factor, thus the bending crashworthiness merits of foam-filled double tubes are identified. Due to their high dynamic bending resistance and energy-absorbing effectiveness, foam-filled double circular tube structures are recommended as crashworthy structures.