Steel Strength and Processing Effects on Impact Deformation for a Crash Energy Management Component

In this study, comparisons are made of the crash energy performance between five grades of steel, including conventional mild steel, conventional HSS, and several grades of advanced HSS including Dual Phase 590Y. The influence of processing effects, work hardening and bake hardening, are also evaluated. Simple closed hat channels are formed by two methods, the first with minimum work hardening, the second with work and bake hardening. These hat channels are then subjected to a drop test at 25 km/hr and 50 km/hr. The load and deflection are recorded for each case and comparisons are made.