An experimental investigation was conducted to compare the crush characteristics and energy absorption capacity of circular and square tubes with located through-hole crush initiator. Circular through-holes were fabricated at three different configurations based on location into steel tubes which had a length of 200 mm. Furthermore, two different side configurations along the tube were considered for introducing the crush initiators. The results found that adding crush initiator onto the tubes were effectively reduced the initial peak force of a thin-walled circular and square tubes under axial quasi-static loading. The peak crush force was reduced within a range 3-10% and 5-16% for circular and square tubes respectively when compared with corresponding tubes without crush initiator. Moreover, the energy absorption capacity of the tubes was independent with the incorporation of through-hole crush initiators. However, the energy absorption of circular and square tubes were slightly decreases when compared with the tubes fabricated four sided crush initiation and tubes without crush initiator. Overall, the effect of location and number of crush initiation proved significantly influences the initial peak forces while maintain the energy absorbed.
Experimental investigation on deformation behavior and energy absorption capability of nested steel tubes under lateral loading
