Inertia effects in impact energy absorbing materials and structures

The significant effects that inertia have on the performance of energy-absorbing materials and structures are illustrated using two examples. In the case of the inversion tube, the principal effect for a tube of uniform thickness is to generate an initial peak force in excess of the steady-state stage 3 force due to the phenomenon of `second impact'. The study of the dynamic crushing of aluminum honeycombs, on the other hand, confirms the sensitivity of the crushing stress of a cellular material to impact velocity.