Rapid Manufacturing of Cellular Structures of Steel or Titaniumalumide

2011 ◽  
Vol 690 ◽  
pp. 103-106 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lukas Löber ◽  
Denis Klemm ◽  
Uta Kühn ◽  
Jürgen Eckert

The Selective Laser Melting (SLM) technique is used to produce different cellular structures. Regular unit cells are placed in tensile bars to determine the mechanical performance of different lattice structures. The mechanical properties of the tensile bars with lattice structures are compared to fully dense tensile bars. Tensile bars are produced by conventional casting to compare the mechanical properties between SLM and casting. To exclude other influences, the whole process chain starting from the powder to the finished part is characterized. The different powders, namely 1.4404 steel powder and a titaniumaluminde (Ti-48Al-2Cr-2Nb [TiAl]) powder are characterized via scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy disperse x-ray spectroscopy (EDS), chemical analysis and light microscopy (LM). In addition measurements of the particle size distribution are conducted. Detailed experimental conditions of the SLM-process are given.

Author(s):  
Mohsen Teimouri ◽  
Masoud Asgari

A topology optimization (TO) method is used to develop new and efficient unit cells to be used in additively manufactured porous lattice structures. Two types of unit cells including solid and thin-walled shell-type ones are introduced for generating the desired regular and functionally graded (FG) lattice structures. To evaluate structural stiffness and crushing behavior of the proposed lattice structures, their mechanical properties, and energy absorption parameters have been calculated through implementing finite element (FE) simulations on them. To validate the simulations, two samples were fabricated by a stereolithography (SLA) machine. Besides, the effects of geometrical parameters and optimizing scheme of the unit cells on the mechanical properties of the proposed structures are studied. Consequently, energy absorption parameters have been calculated and compared for both the solid and thin-walled lattice structures to evaluate their ability in energy absorption. It was found in general that for the solid lattice structures, the mechanical properties, and the crushing parameters are directly affected by porosity though in shell-type ones superior mechanical properties could be achieved even for a smaller proportion of material usage.


Aerospace ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (8) ◽  
pp. 207
Author(s):  
Solomon O. Obadimu ◽  
Kyriakos I. Kourousis

Additive manufacturing (AM) technology has undergone an evolutionary process from fabricating test products and prototypes to fabricating end-user products—a major contributing factor to this is the continuing research and development in this area. AM offers the unique opportunity to fabricate complex structures with intricate geometry such as the lattice structures. These structures are made up of struts, unit cells, and nodes, and are being used not only in the aerospace industry, but also in the sports technology industry, owing to their superior mechanical properties and performance. This paper provides a comprehensive review of the mechanical properties and performance of both metallic and non-metallic lattice structures, focusing on compressive behaviour. In particular, optimisation techniques utilised to optimise their mechanical performance are examined, as well the primary factors influencing mechanical properties of lattices, and their failure mechanisms/modes. Important AM limitations regarding lattice structure fabrication are identified from this review, while the paucity of literature regarding material extruded metal-based lattice structures is discussed.


Polymers ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (10) ◽  
pp. 1563
Author(s):  
Sofia Marquez-Bravo ◽  
Ingo Doench ◽  
Pamela Molina ◽  
Flor Estefany Bentley ◽  
Arnaud Kamdem Tamo ◽  
...  

Extremely high mechanical performance spun bionanocomposite fibers of chitosan (CHI), and cellulose nanofibers (CNFs) were successfully achieved by gel spinning of CHI aqueous viscous formulations filled with CNFs. The microstructural characterization of the fibers by X-ray diffraction revealed the crystallization of the CHI polymer chains into anhydrous chitosan allomorph. The spinning process combining acidic–basic–neutralization–stretching–drying steps allowed obtaining CHI/CNF composite fibers of high crystallinity, with enhanced effect at incorporating the CNFs. Chitosan crystallization seems to be promoted by the presence of cellulose nanofibers, serving as nucleation sites for the growing of CHI crystals. Moreover, the preferential orientation of both CNFs and CHI crystals along the spun fiber direction was revealed in the two-dimensional X-ray diffraction patterns. By increasing the CNF amount up to the optimum concentration of 0.4 wt % in the viscous CHI/CNF collodion, Young’s modulus of the spun fibers significantly increased up to 8 GPa. Similarly, the stress at break and the yield stress drastically increased from 115 to 163 MPa, and from 67 to 119 MPa, respectively, by adding only 0.4 wt % of CNFs into a collodion solution containing 4 wt % of chitosan. The toughness of the CHI-based fibers thereby increased from 5 to 9 MJ.m−3. For higher CNFs contents like 0.5 wt %, the high mechanical performance of the CHI/CNF composite fibers was still observed, but with a slight worsening of the mechanical parameters, which may be related to a minor disruption of the CHI matrix hydrogel network constituting the collodion and gel fiber, as precursor state for the dry fiber formation. Finally, the rheological behavior observed for the different CHI/CNF viscous collodions and the obtained structural, thermal and mechanical properties results revealed an optimum matrix/filler compatibility and interface when adding 0.4 wt % of nanofibrillated cellulose (CNF) into 4 wt % CHI formulations, yielding functional bionanocomposite fibers of outstanding mechanical properties.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giuseppe Del Guercio ◽  
Manuela Galati ◽  
Abdollah Saboori

Abstract Additive Manufacturing processes are considered advanced manufacturing methods. It would be possible to produce complex shape components from a Computer-Aided Design model in a layer-by-layer manner. Lattice structures as one of the complex geometries could attract lots of attention for both medical and industrial applications. In these structures, besides cell size and cell type, the microstructure of lattice structures can play a key role in these structures' mechanical performance. On the other hand, heat treatment has a significant influence on the mechanical properties of the material. Therefore, in this work, the effect of the heat treatments on the microstructure and mechanical behaviour of Ti-6Al-4V lattice structures manufactured by EBM was analyzed. The main mechanical properties were compared with the Ashby and Gibson model. It is very interesting to notice that a more homogeneous failure mode was found for the heat-treated samples. The structures' relative density was the main factor influencing their mechanical performance of the heat-treated samples. It is also found that the heat treatments were able to preserve the stiffness and the compressive strength of the lattice structures. Besides, an increment of both the elongation at failure and the absorbed energy was obtained after the heat treatments. Microstructure analysis of the heat-treated samples confirms the increment of ductility of the heat-treated samples with respect to the as-built one.


Materials ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (7) ◽  
pp. 1610 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paulo J. Morais ◽  
Bianca Gomes ◽  
Pedro Santos ◽  
Manuel Gomes ◽  
Rudolf Gradinger ◽  
...  

Ever-increasing demands of industrial manufacturing regarding mechanical properties require the development of novel alloys designed towards the respective manufacturing process. Here, we consider wire arc additive manufacturing. To this end, Al alloys with additions of Zn, Mg and Cu have been designed considering the requirements of good mechanical properties and limited hot cracking susceptibility. The samples were produced using the cold metal transfer pulse advanced (CMT-PADV) technique, known for its ability to produce lower porosity parts with smaller grain size. After material simulations to determine the optimal heat treatment, the samples were solution heat treated, quenched and aged to enhance their mechanical performance. Chemical analysis, mechanical properties and microstructure evolution were evaluated using optical light microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, X-ray fluorescence analysis and X-ray radiography, as well as tensile, fatigue and hardness tests. The objective of this research was to evaluate in detail the mechanical properties and microstructure of the newly designed high-performance Al–Zn-based alloy before and after ageing heat treatment. The only defects found in the parts built under optimised conditions were small dispersed porosities, without any visible cracks or lack of fusion. Furthermore, the mechanical properties are superior to those of commercial 7xxx alloys and remarkably independent of the testing direction (parallel or perpendicular to the deposit beads). The presented analyses are very promising regarding additive manufacturing of high-strength aluminium alloys.


Proceedings ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 2 (8) ◽  
pp. 494 ◽  
Author(s):  
Recep Gümrük ◽  
Altuğ UŞUN ◽  
Robert Mines

The use of nickel electroless plating to enhance the mechanical properties of stainless steel micro lattice structures manufactured using selective laser melting is described. A coating thickness of 17 μm is achieved, and this increases micro lattice specific stiffness by 75% and specific strength by 50%. There is scope for improving the coating process, and hence improving micro lattice mechanical performance. The methodology described here provides a new potential for optimizing micro lattice mechanical performance and can be extended to other cellular materials with different coating technology.


Author(s):  
Guoying Dong ◽  
Yunlong Tang ◽  
Yaoyao Fiona Zhao

The lattice structure is a type of cellular materials [1] that has truss-like structures with interconnected struts and nodes in a three-dimensional (3D) space. Compared to other cellular materials such as random foams and honeycombs, the lattice structures exhibit better mechanical performance [2]. Some examples of lattice structures are shown in Figure 8.1. The first one is a randomized lattice structure. Due to the disordered lattice cells, the properties of this type of lattice structures are stochastic and difficult to control. But it can be used as implants in orthopedic surgeries. The second and the third are lattice structures with periodic unit cells. The difference is that the strut thickness of the second one is uniform, which is called homogeneous lattice structures. However, the third one has non-uniform strut thickness for specific loading conditions, which is called heterogeneous lattice structures. By properly adjusting the material in vital parts of the lattice structure, the heterogeneous periodic lattice structure can have a better mechanical performance than the homogeneous one with the same weight. Plenty of design and optimization methods [3-5] have been proposed for lattice structures to pursue better performance in different engineering applications. For example, the lattice structure is applied to achieve lightweight [3, 4], energy absorption [6], and thermal management [7]. Due to the complexity of the geometry, the fabrication of lattice structures had been the most critical issue. However, with the development of Additive Manufacturing (AM) processes, the difficulty in the fabrication was largely relieved.


Author(s):  
Derek G. Spear ◽  
Anthony N. Palazotto ◽  
Ryan A. Kemnitz

Abstract Advances in manufacturing technologies have led to the development of a new approach to material selection, in that architectured designs can be created to achieve a specific mechanical objective. Cellular lattice structures have been at the forefront of this movement due to the ability to tailor their mechanical response through tuning of the topology, surface thickness, cell size, and cell density. In this work, the mechanical properties of additively manufactured periodic cellular lattices are evaluated and compared, primarily through the topology and surface thickness parameters. The evaluated lattices were based upon triply periodic minimal surfaces (TPMS), including novel variations on the base TPMS designs, which have not been tested previously. These lattices were fabricated out of Inconel 718 (IN718) through the selective laser melting (SLM) process. Specimens were tested under uniaxial compression, and the resultant mechanical properties were determined. Further discussion of the fabrication quality and deformation behavior of the lattices are provided. Results of this work indicate that the Diamond TPMS lattice has superior mechanical properties to the other lattices tested. Additionally, with the exception of the Primitive TPMS lattice, the base TPMS designs exhibited superior mechanical performance to their derivative lattice designs.


2017 ◽  
Vol 114 (9) ◽  
pp. 2247-2252 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cornelius Gati ◽  
Dominik Oberthuer ◽  
Oleksandr Yefanov ◽  
Richard D. Bunker ◽  
Francesco Stellato ◽  
...  

To understand how molecules function in biological systems, new methods are required to obtain atomic resolution structures from biological material under physiological conditions. Intense femtosecond-duration pulses from X-ray free-electron lasers (XFELs) can outrun most damage processes, vastly increasing the tolerable dose before the specimen is destroyed. This in turn allows structure determination from crystals much smaller and more radiation sensitive than previously considered possible, allowing data collection from room temperature structures and avoiding structural changes due to cooling. Regardless, high-resolution structures obtained from XFEL data mostly use crystals far larger than 1 μm3 in volume, whereas the X-ray beam is often attenuated to protect the detector from damage caused by intense Bragg spots. Here, we describe the 2 Å resolution structure of native nanocrystalline granulovirus occlusion bodies (OBs) that are less than 0.016 μm3 in volume using the full power of the Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS) and a dose up to 1.3 GGy per crystal. The crystalline shell of granulovirus OBs consists, on average, of about 9,000 unit cells, representing the smallest protein crystals to yield a high-resolution structure by X-ray crystallography to date. The XFEL structure shows little to no evidence of radiation damage and is more complete than a model determined using synchrotron data from recombinantly produced, much larger, cryocooled granulovirus granulin microcrystals. Our measurements suggest that it should be possible, under ideal experimental conditions, to obtain data from protein crystals with only 100 unit cells in volume using currently available XFELs and suggest that single-molecule imaging of individual biomolecules could almost be within reach.


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