Impact response of composite energy absorbers based on foam-filled metallic and polymeric auxetic frames

In this paper, an innovative concept is proposed, based on the hexachiral auxetic frames filled with foams with enhanced energy absorption capabilities. Numerical assessments of the composite foam-filled auxetic absorbers, of pure foam blocks and unfilled auxetic frames for metallic and polymeric material combinations were accomplished considering a case of localized impact. The energy absorbed by the composite absorbers are found superior to the sum of the energies absorbed by constituent elements tested separately with clear advantages also at the level of the specific energy absorbed per unit mass. The interactions between the two constituents are analyzed and discussed. An experiment considering a 3D-printed polymeric hexachiral frame filled with open-cell soft polyurethane foam under localized impact is conducted to validate the numerical approach. Eventually, a parametric sensitivity study is conducted numerically to illustrate the effects of geometrical parameters on the energy absorption capacity. Overall, the results confirm the potential and the great design flexibility of the concept, provides the guidelines to design advanced energy absorbing system, underlies the importance of the combination between the frame and foam properties and the effect of the main geometrical parameters on the performance.