Bending and lateral crushing behavior of a GFRP and PA6 reinforced aluminum square tube

In this study, the bending behavior of a thin-walled aluminum square tube (AST) were analyzed using the finite element (FE) method, and reinforcing arrangements were decided for the composite beams based on the FE results. Accordingly, bending behavior of thin-walled ASTs with internal cast polyamide (PA6) and external glass fiber reinforcement polymers (GFRP) were investigated via a quasi static three-point bending test experimentally. Moreover, bending performance under impact loading was also investigated experimentally. The results revealed that local buckling has a decisive influence on bending performance of the tube, and the contribution of inner reinforcement is more effective than outer reinforcement. The reinforcements provide 575 % and 312 % increases in bending load and impact energy, respectively. The developed plastic-metal hybrid-composite structure is promising especially for critical supporting parts in vehicles. It is thought that the combination of these materials will offer new focus of attention for designers seeking more appropriate composite beams with high bending load and impact resistance.