The application of composites in automotive structures has largely been driven by the need for energy efficiency, increased safety requirements, economics related to fabrication, and the designers need for enhanced flexibility in form through increased materials and processing options. A field of intense activity within the automotive area is that of impact resistance and crash worthiness, where attention is increasingly being diverted from metals to polymer-matrix composites. Considerable efforts has been expended over the past decade on the investigation of composite tube and hollow structures for energy absorption and crush worthiness. In comparison to metals, most composites used for such applications are characterized by brittle rather than ductile behavior. Although attention is currently being devoted almost exclusively to the front structure (such as in crush rails), there is a growing awareness of the need for overall crash resistance and structural integrity in transportation vehicular structures. Results of a study are presented that investigates the feasibility and performance of elastomeric polyurethane matrices for crush-energy absorbing structures. The data compare favorably with earlier investigations an glass-reinforced composite tubes with vinyl-esther matrix. The test matrix is discussed, and conclusions for further investigations are presented. Of particular interest in this exploratory study are the failure mechanism of the elastomeric structures that may prove to be suitable for integration into automotive applications.
An evaluation of elastomeric matrix composites for crush-energy absorbing structures
Entwicklung von Verbundstoffen mit Elastomermatrix für energieabsorbierende Strukturen
1996
8 Seiten, 7 Bilder, 1 Tabelle, 10 Quellen
Conference paper
English
An Evaluation of Elastomeric Matrix Composites for Crush-Energy Absorbing Structures
British Library Conference Proceedings | 1996
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Automotive engineering | 1996
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