Numerical study of 3D-printed metallic metamaterial for high energy absorption

Abstract

This project presents a numerical study of a 3D-printed metallic metamaterial for high energy absorption. Inspired by auxetic designs, the metamaterial is designed by incorporating the missing rib structure into its lattice construction. Its mechanical properties are optimised using Finite Element (FE) simulations and experimental validation. The goal of this study is to derive the optimal lattice structure with the highest energy absorption capacity by investigating the impact of its geometric parameters. The simulations are carried out using FE software and the properties of the metamaterial are analysed under different quasistatic loading conditions, namely compressional and tensile. The effects of the geometric parameters such as the plate thickness, plate curvature, and hollow diameter, on the mechanical properties of the metamaterial are investigated. The findings demonstrate that the plate thickness and hollow diameter significantly affect the energy absorption capacity of the metamaterial while the plate curvature has an impact on the metamaterial’s isotropy. Moreover, the optimised metamaterial is 3D-printed using Selective Laser Melting (SLM) method, and its mechanical properties are characterized experimentally. The experimental data are found to be in good agreement with the simulation results, confirming the validity of the numerical model. The study offers a thorough understanding of the mechanical characteristics and energy absorption capability of 3D-printed metallic metamaterials, which can be helpful in developing new metamaterials for high energy absorption applications.