Experimental and numerical analysis of the impact behavior in truncated thin-walled tubes under axial loading

Meenatchisundaram Paramasivam; Muthusamy Chinnian; Vinayagar Karanthamalai

doi:10.1515/mt-2025-0085

Article

Experimental and numerical analysis of the impact behavior in truncated thin-walled tubes under axial loading

Meenatchisundaram Paramasivam
Meenatchisundaram Paramasivam, Assistant Professor, born in 1988, is currently pursuing a PhD at Anna University, Chennai, and he completed his Master’s Degree in Production Engineering. Presently, he is working as an Assistant Professor at Sethu Institute of Technology, Pulloor, Kariappti, Virudhunagar, Tamilnadu, India.
, Muthusamy Chinnian
Muthusamy Chinnian, Professor, born in 1971, obtained his PhD in 2016 from Anna University, Chennai. He has extensive experience in mechanical engineering research and education, specializing in desalination and optimization techniques. Currently, he serves as a Professor at PSN College of Engineering and Technology, Tirunelveli, Tamil Nadu, India.
and Vinayagar Karanthamalai
Vinayagar Karanthamalai, Professor, born in 1976, obtained his PhD in 2018 from Anna University, Chennai. He has extensive experience in mechanical engineering research and education, specializing in crashworthiness analysis and optimization techniques. Currently, he serves as a Professor at Solamalai College of Engineering, Madurai, Tamilnadu, India.

Published/Copyright: July 9, 2025

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From the journal Materials Testing Volume 67 Issue 9

Abstract

Nowadays usage of vehicles tremendously increased throughout the world. The crashworthiness of vehicle structures plays a crucial role in ensuring passenger safety during collisions; in order to improve the energy absorption behaviors, this research aims to introduce the new arrangements of truncated single, double and tri tubes. Both experimental and numerical axial compression loading is done on 6 different orientations in normal and reversed taper tubes and made to analyze various crashworthiness indicators such as peak crushing force (F_peak), mean crushing force (F_mean), total energy absorption (TEA), specific energy absorption (SEA) and crush force efficiency (CFE). The deviations between experimental and numerical results are very close to each other. Further, a multi-objective optimization of factors affecting crashworthiness indicators was given utilizing the Taguchi technique and Grey relational analysis (GRA). The findings indicate that, in comparison to an inline order configuration, the TEA increases when the tubes are arranged in triangle order with SEA and CFE also increase in reasonable manner. It is observed that the reversed taper orientation withstands for the maximum crash loads in all the orientations.

Keywords: crashworthiness; energy absorption; crushing force; numerical simulation; grey relational analysis

Corresponding author: Meenatchisundaram Paramasivam, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Sethu Institute of Technology, Kariapatti, Virudhunagar, India, E-mail: pmsapkresearch@gmail.com

About the authors

Meenatchisundaram Paramasivam

Meenatchisundaram Paramasivam, Assistant Professor, born in 1988, is currently pursuing a PhD at Anna University, Chennai, and he completed his Master’s Degree in Production Engineering. Presently, he is working as an Assistant Professor at Sethu Institute of Technology, Pulloor, Kariappti, Virudhunagar, Tamilnadu, India.

Muthusamy Chinnian

Muthusamy Chinnian, Professor, born in 1971, obtained his PhD in 2016 from Anna University, Chennai. He has extensive experience in mechanical engineering research and education, specializing in desalination and optimization techniques. Currently, he serves as a Professor at PSN College of Engineering and Technology, Tirunelveli, Tamil Nadu, India.

Vinayagar Karanthamalai

Vinayagar Karanthamalai, Professor, born in 1976, obtained his PhD in 2018 from Anna University, Chennai. He has extensive experience in mechanical engineering research and education, specializing in crashworthiness analysis and optimization techniques. Currently, he serves as a Professor at Solamalai College of Engineering, Madurai, Tamilnadu, India.

Acknowledgments

The authors are grateful for the support rendered by the Management of Sethu Institute of Technology, PSN College of Engineering and Technology and Solamalai College of Engineering.

Research ethics: Not applicable.
Informed consent: Not applicable.
Author contributions: The authors have accepted responsibility for the entire content of this manuscript and approved its submission.
Use of Large Language Models, AI and Machine Learning Tools: None declared.
Conflict of interests: The authors state no conflict of interest.
Research funding: None declared.
Data availability: The raw data can be obtained on request from the corresponding author.

Nomenclature

D: Major Diameter
D: Minor Diameter
H: Height of Tube
F(δ): Crushing Force
Δ: Displacement
M: Mass
T: Thickness
SR: Single Row
DR: Double Row
NT: Normal Tube
RT: Reversed Tube
NRT: Normal Reversed Tube
RNT: Reversed Normal Tube
F_peak: Peak Crushing Force
TEA: Total Energy Absorption
CFE: Crush Force Efficiency
SEA: Specific Energy Absorption
F_mean: Mean Crushing Force
EA: Energy Absorption
RSM: Response Surface Methodology
EAS: Energy Absorbing Structure
CTGT: Conical Tubes with Graded Thickness

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Published Online: 2025-07-09

Published in Print: 2025-09-25

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Articles in the same Issue

https://doi.org/10.1515/mt-2025-0085

Keywords for this article

crashworthiness; energy absorption; crushing force; numerical simulation; grey relational analysis