Energy absorption in glass‐reinforced continuous strand mat composites

A unique test fixture was developed for de- termining the energy-absorbing mechanisms in automotive composite material systems. The objective of the test method was to quantify the energy absorption and identify the fail- ure mechanisms associated with the observed frond forma- tion in progressive crush testing of composite tubes by test- ing less costly composite plates under progressive crush load conditions. Quasi-static progressive crush tests were performed on glass/polyurethane continuous strand mat (CSM) composite plate specimens. The effect of various test parameters on energy absorption was evaluated by varying the following parameters during testing: the loading rate, profile radius, and profile constraint condition. The experi- mental data in conjunction with the test observations were used to develop analytical models for predicting the crash- worthiness of automotive composite structures. The crush- ing process and the load-deflection curves were similar to the progressive crushing of tubes. Modification of the basic specimen geometry was required when testing material sys- tems that have low axial stiffness to prevent a global buck- ling mode. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 90: 3222-3232, 2003

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