Experimental and numerical investigations of effects of section geometry and metallic foam filler on deformation and energy absorption characteristics of thin-walled tubes

In this research، effects of section geometry and metallic foam filler on mechanical behavior of thin-walled tubes under axial quasi-static loads are studied both experimentally and numerically. Three types of Al-1200 thin-walled geometries، circular، square and hexagonal in the forms of hollow and foam-filled tubes are subjected to quasi-static loads and their energy absorption characteristics including maximum load، mean crushing load، absorbed energy and deformation modes are studied and compared. Instron 8305 model machine is used to axial quasi-static loading of the samples. Results of the research show that circular section has the greatest values of mean crushing load and absorbed energy; metallic foam filler increases the mean crushing load and energy absorption capacity; foam-filling does not affect the number of folds in general and finally، absorbed energy for foam-filled tube is larger than sum of energies absorbed by the tube and foam when are loaded separately. Furthermore، numerical results are in good agreement with the experimental data.