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@article{194501,
        author = {SUGANDVARMAN E and BARANIRAJ A},
        title = {Experimental Investigation of Deformation Behaviour of Thin-Walled Circular and Square Crash Tubes Under Axial Compression},
        journal = {International Journal of Innovative Research in Technology},
        year = {2026},
        volume = {12},
        number = {10},
        pages = {3658-3664},
        issn = {2349-6002},
        url = {https://ijirt.org/article?manuscript=194501},
        abstract = {Thin-walled metallic structures are widely used in automotive crash management systems because of their excellent energy absorption capability during collision events. These structures are designed to undergo controlled deformation so that the kinetic energy generated during impact can be dissipated safely without causing severe damage to the main structural components of the vehicle.
Crash tubes or crash boxes are typically placed between the bumper beam and the vehicle chassis. These components act as sacrificial elements that absorb impact energy by progressive deformation during a crash event. The ability of these structures to absorb energy depends on several factors including material properties, cross-sectional geometry, wall thickness and structural reinforcement.
The present work experimentally investigates the deformation behaviour of thin-walled circular and square crash tubes subjected to axial compressive loading. Tubular specimens fabricated from commercially available materials such as mild steel, galvanized iron, aluminium and stainless steel were tested using a hydraulic compression setup available in the laboratory.
In addition to plain tubular specimens, reinforced mild steel tubes were also fabricated by inserting an internal reinforcement plate inside the tube. The objective of introducing reinforcement was to examine whether structural reinforcement can improve deformation stability and energy absorption capability.
Experimental observations revealed that mild steel specimens exhibited stable progressive folding behaviour whereas galvanized iron specimens showed folding and crumpling patterns. Aluminium specimens experienced localized deformation due to their lower yield strength. Stainless steel specimens were included mainly to observe deformation behaviour where circular tubes exhibited crumpling while square tubes experienced buckling and cracking due to stress concentration at the corners.
The results highlight the influence of material properties and tube geometry on the crashworthiness performance of thin-walled energy absorbing structures.},
        keywords = {Crashworthiness, Thin-Walled Tubes, Energy Absorption, Axial Compression, Experimental Study},
        month = {March},
        }