Coupled energy absorption effect and structural optimization of an aluminum foam-filled multi-cell thin-walled conical tube

Coupled energy absorption effect between the aluminum foam and the thin-walled tube plays a significant role in the crushing process. Firstly, a composite structure filled with aluminum foam in a multi-cell conical tube is proposed. Secondly, the influence of structure parameters on coupled energy absorption is investigated. Thirdly, the energy absorption mechanism is analyzed. Additionally, the structure is subjected to multi-objective optimization. The results show that increasing structure parameters are beneficial to coupled energy absorption effect. In addition, there are SEA = 26.18 J/g and FP =86.22 kN for the optimal tube, which is superior to most existing aluminum foam-filled tubes.