Effect of fiber volume fraction, fiber length and fiber tow size on the energy absorption of chopped carbon fiber-polymer composites

Composite materials have the potential to reduce the overall cost and weight of automotive structures with the added benefit of being able to dissipate large amounts of impact energy by progressive crushing. To identify and quantify the energy-absorbing mechanisms in candidate automotive composite materials, modified test methodologies were developed for conducting progressive crush tests on flat-plate composite specimens. The test method...