Bending crush resistance of partially foam-filled sections

Potential applications of foam-filled sections are for the automotive struc tures. A foam-filled section can be used for the front rail and firewall st ructures to absorb impact energy during frontal or side collision. In the c ase of biaxial loading where bending and axial compression are involved in the crushing mechanics, the foam filler will be significant in maintaining progressive crushing of the thin-walled structures so that more impact ener gy can be absorbed. In the case of side collision, the foam-filled section can be used to strengthen the B-pillar structure to avoid severe intrusion in the passenger compartment.