A comparative study of energy absorption characteristics of foam-filled and multi-cell square columns

A comparative study of energy absorption characteristics between foam-filled square columns and multi-cell square columns was conducted by using nonlinear finite element codes LS-DYNA. The columns and the foam were made of the same material aluminum and the thickness of all sidewalls of columns was kept 1.5 mm. Numerical results compared well with theoretical predictions and showed that the energy absorption efficiency of multi-cell columns was about 50–100% higher than that of foam-filled columns. It means that multi-cell columns were more attractive than foam-filled columns and the reason for this was analyzed by a comparison of the collapse modes. Furthermore, a type of pre-crushed trigger was introduced and modeled for multi-cell columns. This type of trigger was found to be effective to eliminate the initial peak force and improve the efficiency of a multi-cell column as an energy absorber.