Parametric Study of Hybrid Composites for Automotive Bumper Application

Abstract

With the surge in vehicle ownership coupled with rising concern towards environmental impacts, there is a pressing need to develop a fuel-efficient vehicle with assurance of crashworthiness and pedestrian safety. Front bumper beam, an energy absorbing component of the front bumper system, exhibit ample potential for the implementation of sustainable and lightweight materials. This study explored the feasibility of 16 plies of hybrid natural/synthetic composite for bumper beam application through finite element analysis. The simulation was performed using Ansys LS-DYNA with the test conditions in accordance with the Euro NCAP full-width frontal impact test. Based on the parametric studies conducted with different fibre orientations, stacking configuration, fibre materials and ply thickness, hybrid glass/flax composite bumper beam was deemed as the best hybrid composite with a configuration of (G[±45°]₄ F[±45°]₄ F[0°/90°]₄ G[0°/90°]₄). The crashworthiness of the composite proved to be superior to the conventional DP1400 bumper beam, displaying comparable specific energy absorption of around 12.65 kJ/kg while substantially reducing the peak force by from 2380 to 993 kN at the expense of reduced energy absorption capability and increased in thickness. All in all, this study accentuates the viability of hybrid glass/flax composite to substitute conventional steel in bumper beam applications.