Two dimensionless performance indicators for the crashworthiness of tubes: Energy-absorbing effectiveness factor (EAEF) and effectiveness of energy absorption (EEA)

• Two dimensionless performance indicators for the crashworthiness of tubes are articulated and compared. • Energy-absorbing effectiveness factor ( EAEF ) accounts for the plastic flow stress and tensile failure strain. • Effectiveness of energy absorption ( EEA ) considers the yield strength of a tube material. • If a tube is to be utilized up to the tensile failure and the entire stress-strain curve beyond yield point of tube material is available, EAEF provides an appropriate measure of its energy absorption effectiveness. • If the design objective is to maximize plastic energy dissipation across a larger portion of the tube material and/or only yield strength of tube material is available, EEA offers a simple and more convenient but conservative guidance. Tubes are widely used structural components across various industries, including construction, transportation, space, and aerospace sectors. Energy absorption is a key performance indicator of tubes under axial crushing which is used to evaluate their ability to dissipate energy and protect the main structure and, in many cases, passengers. In this note, two dimensionless performance indicators for the crashworthiness of tubes, i.e., the energy-absorbing effectiveness factor ( EAEF ) and the effectiveness of energy absorption ( EEA ), are articulated and compared with some available experimental data.