Energy absorption of multicell thin walled structures filled with polyurethane infiltrated open cell aluminum foam
Description
This dataset characterized the energy absorption behavior of hybrid structures combining multi-cell thin-walled aluminum alloy tubes with aluminum foam (AF) and aluminum foam/polyurethane composites (AF/PU). The underlying hypothesis was that integrating lightweight cellular materials into multi-cell structures could synergistically enhance crashworthiness by optimizing deformation modes and increasing energy absorption performance parameters. Data were derived from quasi-static compression and dynamic drop-weight impact tests, supplemented by validated finite element simulations. Key findings revealed that the S3 configuration (MTS + AF1/PU) exhibited superior overall performance, significantly mitigating the initial peak force while increasing the mean crushing force and specific energy absorption (SEA) compared to empty tubes. The dataset included force-displacement curves, processed metrics (EA, MCF, SEA, CFE), and SEM and micro-CT images, enabling users to interpret deformation patterns, validate numerical models, or optimize hybrid structures for automotive and aerospace crashworthiness applications.
Files
Steps to reproduce
The composite energy absorption structures were fabricated by first preparing spherical open-cell aluminum foam (AF, 900 kg/m³, ~67% porosity) and polyurethane (PU, GF-5), then infiltrating PU into AF via a vacuum-assisted process (ethanol cleaning, ultrasonic treatment, drying, vacuum infiltration, and curing at 90 °C for 10 h) to form AF/PU composites. These were assembled with 5052-H14 aluminum alloy multi-cell thin-walled structures (MTS) of 0.8, 1.0, and 1.2 mm wall thickness into five configurations (S1: MTS only; S2: MTS+AF1; S3: MTS+AF1/PU; S4: MTS+AF1+AF2; S5: MTS+AF1/PU+AF2/PU). Material properties were characterized via tensile (ASTM E8M) and compressive tests (2 mm/min). Structural performance was evaluated under quasi-static compression (WDW-E200, 2 mm/min) and dynamic impact (drop hammer, 4.85 m/s), with data recorded via universal testing machine and piezoelectric sensor systems. The energy absorption performance parameters were calculated using formulas.
Institutions
- North University of ChinaShanxi, Taiyuan