The ultimate energy absorption capacity of steel rods is investigated experimentally. To get a general aspect of energy absorption capacity, a wide variety of parameters is involved in the test as followings. ・materials (mild steel, high strength steel, stainless steel) ・detailed shape of the rod at the fixed end (sharp change, smooth change) ・sectional area (constant, changing) ・loading amplitude (fixed, incremental, random) ・loading direction (uni-axial, bi-axial) Hysteretic curves can be decomposed into the skeleton part and the Bauschinger part. The energy absorption capacity attained by the skeleton part can be well predicted by an analytical method and that attained by the Bauschinger part can be estimated by an empirical relationship obtained by several tests under a constant amplitude. As a result, the influence of the detailed shape of the rod on the ultimate energy absorption capacity is emphasized.
