Axial crushing of circular multi-cell columns

• Circular multi-cell columns with different sections are tested under axial loading.
• Deformation modes and energy absorption properties of the multi-cells are studied.
• Numerical analyses are carried out to simulate the deformation and force responses.
• Constituent element method is proposed to predict the crush resistance of columns.
• Theoretical predictions compare well with experimental and numerical results.

Multi-cell columns are highly efficient energy absorbing components under axial compression. However, the experimental investigations and theoretical analyses for the deformation modes and mechanisms of them are quite few. In this paper, the axial crushing of circular multi-cell columns are studied experimentally, numerically and theoretically. Circular multi-cell columns with different sections are axially compressed quasi-statically and numerical analyses are carried out by nonlinear finite element code LS-DYNA to simulate the experiments. The deformation modes of the multi-cell columns are described and the energy absorption properties of them are compared with those of simple circular tube. Theoretical models based on the constituent element method are then proposed to predict the crush resistance of circular multi-cell specimens. The theoretical predictions are found to be in a good agreement with the experimental and numerical results.

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