Effect of Carbon Fiber Reinforcement Composite on the Formability of Multi-Layer Tube Utilizing Hydroforming Technology

Abstract

Nowadays, due to importance of the lightweight materials in industries and reducing the consumed energy, obtaining a lightweight material with high strength and stiffness is required. A combination of fiber and metal materials can close us reach our goal. Fiber-metal composite tube structures can be one of these ultra-hybrid materials which have high strength and stiffness with flexible material properties like fiber tubes which provide a light structure with improved performance compared to singular tube parts. In this research, a combined tubular structure of AL-6063 and carbon fiber was used. The free bulge hydroforming, lateral 3-point bending test, and axial compression were numerically and experimentally conducted to evaluate the effect of the carbon fiber on the AL-6063 tube. Also, a bi-layer AL-6063 tube was used to compare the result between a bi-layer of metal tube and the fiber metal tube laminates (FMTLs). The results demonstrated that the bi-layer tube of carbon fiber-Al can show a considerable performance in a high pressure while it is not a proper structure where a radial load is applied.