Anisotropic compression behaviors of bio-inspired modified body-centered cubic lattices validated by additive manufacturing

Bio-inspired lattices have been proved to possess better energy absorption capacity than conventional structures. Here, the two-dimensional deep-sea glass sponge structure is extended to three-dimensional and further topologically optimized to design a novel lattice called modified body-centered cubic (MBCC) lattice. The quasi-static compression behavior of different lattices was investigated via extensive finite element (FE) simulations validated by the experimental tests. The results indicated that the proposed MBCC design can further increase the energy absorption capacity compared with the previous bio-inspired and the conventional body-centered cubic designs. Impressively, the new lattice made of steel exhibits specific energy absorption close to that of foams made of titanium alloy. In addition, the influences of the deviation coefficient and the loading direction on the compressive behaviors of MBCC lattice are investigated parametrically. The proposed lattice structures present a new deformation mode and peculiar anisotropy regarding to the specific strength and the oscillation in the stress-strain curves.