Quasi-static crushing behaviour of the energy absorbing connector with polyurethane foam and multiple pleated plates

In this study, a novel energy absorbing connector with polyurethane (PU) foam and multiple pleated (MP) plates was contrived to dissipate energy, and the energy absorbing response was experimentally, numerically and analytically examined. First, quasi-static loading tests on the connectors were performed, from which the deformation modes, force–displacement curves, and energy absorbing performances (such as specific energy absorption (SEA) and crushing force efficiency (CFE)) were obtained. In addition, a numerical method was adopted to facilitate the evaluation of energy absorbing performance of the connectors. It was found that SEA could be increased by increasing the MP plate thickness, angle between the MP plate and flat plate (θ₀), and filling PU foam. Moreover, the PU foam-filled connector was also found to be superior to the empty connector with regards to higher CFE. Finally, an energy-balance based analytical model was established to forecast the force–displacement response of the proposed connector. The experimental and analytical results were found to be similar.