A dynamic crash model for energy absorption in braided composite materials - Part II: Implementation and verification

A dynamic crash model is developed and implemented to model the failure behavior and energy absorption of braided composite structures. Part I describes the development and theoretical foundation of a viscoplastic material model that captures the rate-dependent behavior present in braided composite materials. Part II presents the implementation of the model into a finite element model program and the experimental results for tubes crushed from quasi-static to 4000 mm/s rates used to verify the model. Energy absorption decreases sharply with an increase in crush rate, which is reflected in this model. Design concepts are also introduced to increase energy absorption in braided composites.