The study analyzed the influence of random defects on plateau stresses of honeycomb materials with varied relative densities and established a computational model of honeycomb materials considering random defects. The results show that the plateau stress decreases evidently as the random defects increase, which is closely related to the relative density of honeycomb materials. It also set up a functional relationship between relative plateau stresses and random defects as well as that between relative plateau stresses and relative densities. Taken topological structure, random defects and strain rate effect into consideration, and it proposed a dynamic constitutive model of honeycomb materials under low-middle impact loading. And the proposed constitutive model possesses a better applicability to match the stress-strain relationship of honeycomb materials in existing impact experiments. The proposed constitutive model could make a theoretical foundation in material design and practical application of honeycombs containing random defects.

To enhance the mechanical performances of traditional honeycombs, a novel combined honeycomb (HKH) was proposed based on the regular hexagonal honeycomb (RHH) and Kagome honeycomb (KH). A systematic investigation of the in-plane dynamic crushing behaviors of the honeycombs was conducted via the finite element method, and the crashworthiness characteristics of the three honeycombs were examined. Using one-dimensional shock wave theory and least squares fitting, a fitting formula of the plateau stress was obtained, and the deformation mechanism of the HKH was determined based on the elastic buckling of the cell wall. The results showed that the HKH exhibited a higher plateau stress than the RHH for any velocity impact, while the negative Poisson’s ratio effect was more significant than that of the KH for low-velocity impacts (the peak Poisson’s ratios of the HKH and KH were −0.312 and −0.286, respectively). Furthermore, the effects of the impact velocity and relative density on the energy absorption and auxetic performances were explored. In this study, a novel design was proposed by combining various cell elements to obtain better crashworthiness, providing a new concept to promote the development of lightweight materials.