Aluminum foam-filled auxetic double tubular structures: Design and characteristic study

In this work, a double tubular structure consisting of auxetic tubular structures and aluminum foam was proposed. The mechanical properties of the aluminum foam-filled auxetic tubular structures and aluminum foam-filled conventional tubes under uniaxial compression were compared numerically and experimentally. Compared with conventional aluminum foam-filled tubular structures (FFT), aluminum foam-filled auxetic double tubular structures (FFADT) have stable compression deformation and superior energy absorption because of stronger interaction between the aluminum foam and the auxetic tube. Although the FFADT exhibits lower bearing capacity but overcomes the shortcomings of larger peak force and larger load fluctuation that usually occurs in conventional tubes.