Numerical Simulation on Energy Absorption Properties of Thin-Walled Square Tubes with Cutouts

The energy absorption properties and the crash-worthiness parameters, such as the specific energy absorption (SEA), the average crushing force, the peak crushing force, and so on, of the same and different structures of thin-walled square tubes with one or several cutouts under the axial impact were numerically studied and compared through the finite element method. The results show that compared with the hollow square tubes without cutout, the peak crushing force of the tubes with cutouts changs slightly, while the SEA fluctuates to a varying degree. Among them, the square hollow tube with L₀=0.50L and four square cutouts show the best performance.