Study and Design of a New Range of Composite Based Shock Absorbers for the Automotive Sector
Résumé
This study shows the benefit of a new composite material in terms of energy absorption. Thanks to their numerous fracture mechanisms, composite materials can absorb an important amount of energy. A glass fiber reinforced composite with a thermoplastic matrix has been used in this study for new shock absorption parts for automotive application. An interesting behavior of non-crimp fabric composite with an orientation of fibers of ±45° has been identified: indeed, this behavior promotes a larger number of fiber ruptures, delamination fractures and a higher elongation at break. Square section was chosen for experimental tests to compare the amount of absorbed energy with aluminum absorbers. Numerical tests were also ruled to measure the amount of absorbed energy on different sections.