Experimental and RSM-Based Investigation of the Crashworthiness Characteristics of Aluminium/Carbon Hybrid Composites Under Axial Loading

Metal-polymer hybrid composites blend the high strength and stiffness of metals with the low weight and corrosion resistance of polymers. This synergy is expected to provide better crashworthiness, energy absorption, and design flexibility compared to traditional single-material structures. The present research intended to examine the crashworthiness features of an aluminium/CFRP structure under various operating conditions by optimizing process parameters through both experimental investigation and numerical simulation. The design of the experiment was carried out using Design-Expert software with response surface methodology (RSM). The test results demonstrate that the peak load, energy absorption (EA), and specific energy absorption (SEA) are significantly higher for the S11 sample, for which the working temperature, holding time, and crushing speed were set at 25 °C, 13 h, and 5 mm/min, respectively. Moreover, EA and SEA are also relatively higher for the S11 sample compared to the other samples. The test results showcased that temperature is a decisive factor for the mechanical properties of the tube, which is clearly reflected through S9. The higher peak force and EA indicate greater strength and a more energy-dissipative system. Moreover, a close correlation was observed between the experimentally measured and RSM-based optimisation. Hence, RSM was found to be suitable for designing the experiments and for understanding the failure modes of the CFRP/aluminium structure.