• Novel estimation of deformed length for thin tubes impacting a rigid anvil. • Alexander’s model is proven inapplicable for high-speed tube-anvil impact scenarios. • The proposed analytical model predicts an undeformed tube section at any velocity. • Deformation trends resemble the mushrooming effect seen in impacted circular bars. • ABAQUS simulations validate the analytical formulation across all impact speeds. The dynamic response of thin-walled tubes during impact with a rigid anvil is studied, and the deformed length of the tube after impact is estimated as a function of the initial velocity of the tube, as well as the physical and mechanical properties of the tube. The present analytical model is an improvement on the existing one proposed by Alexander, which addresses the crushing of such tubes between two platens in a “concertina” mode of collapse. Furthermore, a simulation is conducted in ABAQUS to verify the current model. According to the results, the analytical formulation is in close agreement with ABAQUS results across the entire velocity range, with typical differences of ≈ 8-20%, indicating that it captures nonlinear deformation behavior more accurately.
Abood et al. (2026) studied this question.