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Weight plays a significant role in the automotive and aerospace fields due to the demand of lightweight material structures. A lighter body in weight (BIW) and in structure can reduce fuel consumption, lessen emissions, and support the SDGs 9, 11, 12, and 13. Therefore, polyurethane (PU) foam is suitable for applications that require low weight. The characteristics of hybrid polyurethane-graphite micro were successfully evaluated in this study. Several tests have been used to characterize these structures, such as, compression, hardness, density, surface evaluation, and FTIR analysis. The results showed that the expansion and shrinkage variations lead to different shapes at specific ratios. Compression tests show that the highest value occurred at 0.84 kN, with a 4:1 ratio found in pure PU foam without any reinforcement. PU foam with 2% graphite filler showed the highest results at the 4:1 ratio with a value of 0.45 kN. Furthermore, the highest hardness test result was 37.7 SHD. Density testing indicates that the highest value is obtained from specimens with a 4:1 ratio of 0.077 g/cm3. FTIR testing reveals that adding graphite as a filler alters the chemical bonds during the formation of solid PU foam. Surface observations show that adding graphite as a filler influences the variation in material structure formation. All the evaluation has tended to conclude the present combination as suitable for lightweight structures applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current study investigates the effect of a hybrid L-profile aluminium/glass-fiber-reinforced polymer stacking sequence under axial and lateral compression loads. Four stacking sequences are studied: aluminium (A)—glass-fiber (GF)—AGF, GFA, GFAGF, and AGFA. In the axial compression test, the aluminium/GFRP hybrid tends to crush in a more progressive and stable failure than the net aluminium and net GFRP specimens, with a relatively more stable load-carrying capacity throughout the experimental tests. The AGF stacking sequence was second, with an energy absorption of 145.31 kJ, following AGFA at 157.19 kJ. The load-carrying capacity of AGFA was the highest, with an average peak crushing force of 24.59 kN. The second-highest peak crushing force, 14.94 kN, was achieved by GFAGF. The highest amount of energy absorption, 157.19 J, was achieved by the AGFA specimen. The lateral compression test showed a significant increase in load-carrying and energy absorption capacity in the aluminium/GFRP hybrid specimens compared to the net GFRP specimens. AGF had the highest energy absorption with 10.41 J, followed by AGFA with 9.49 J. AGF also had the highest peak crushing force with 2.98 kN, followed by AGFA with 2.16 kN. The most crashworthy stacking sequence among the four variations tested in this experimental research was the AGF stacking sequence because of its great load-carrying capacity, energy absorption, and specific energy absorption in axial and lateral loading. The study provides greater insight into the failure of hybrid composite laminates under lateral and axial compression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]