THE STATIC AND DYNAMIC AXIAL COLLAPSE OF FIBERGLASS COMPOSITE AUTOMOTIVE FRAME RAILS

An automotive frame rail of hourglass cross-section, made of a glass f ibre/vinylester composite, was designed for use in the apron construct ion of the car in order to obtain a high degree of crashworthiness at this location of the car body. The crashworthy behaviour of this struc tural component in axial compression at various strain rates (head-on collision) was studied experimentally. The modes of collapse at macros copic scale, the microscopic fracture patterns and the energy absorbin g capability of such rail beams were examined and discussed. A theoret ical analysis of the collapse mechanism of the components tested under axial compression is proposed leading to a good approximation of the energy absorbed during crushing.