Energy absorption and dynamic impact performance of aluminum foam panel-reinforced concrete layered composite structures

Under severe impact loading, conventional concrete structures have a relatively simple material system and lack an internal buffering layer. As a result, stress waves are weakly reflected and scattered within the structure, impact energy is transmitted mainly through the thickness, and the available energy-dissipation paths are limited. These limitations restrict their ability to meet the demands of modern protective engineering. To improve impact-energy dissipation and protective performance, this study proposes an aluminum foam panel-reinforced concrete (AFPRC) layered composite structure. Static flexural tests, drop-weight impact tests, and electromagnetic split Hopkinson pressure bar (ESHPB) tests were conducted to compare the energy-dissipation behavior of open-cell aluminum foam panel-reinforced concrete (OAFPRC) and closed-cell aluminum foam panel-reinforced concrete (CAFPRC). For the tested 5 mm open-cell and closed-cell aluminum foam panel configurations, specimen dimensions, and loading conditions, the maximum static flexural load of the structure increased by 42.11% compared with plain concrete (PC), and the final-failure impact energy was approximately 4.81 times the PC value. At 3000 V, CAFPRC reached a reflected energy of 856 J, clearly higher than that of PC, while the mass fraction of large fragments after failure increased from 35.8% to 64.5%, indicating a lower degree of fragmentation. The results show that the proposed structure provides improved energy dissipation and impact protection, and may serve as a reference for experimental studies and preliminary design of similar layered protective systems.