Deformation mode and energy absorption of polycrystal-inspired square-cell lattice structures

Lattice structures are widely used in many engineering fields due to their excellent mechanical properties such as high specific strength and high specific energy absorption (SEA) capacity. In this paper, square-cell lattice structures with different lattice orientations are investigated in terms of the deformation modes and the energy absorption (EA) performance. Finite element (FE) simulations of in-plane compression are carried out, and the theoretical models from the energy balance principle are deve-loped for calculating the EA of these lattice structures. Satisfactory agreement is achieved between the FE simulation results and the theoretical results. It indicates that the 30 degrees oriented lattice has the largest EA capacity. Furthermore, inspired by the polycrystal microstructure of metals, novel structures of bi-crystal lattices and quad-crystal lattices are developed through combining multiple singly oriented lattices together. The results of FE simulations of compression indicate that the EA performances of symmetric lattice bi-crystals and quad-crystals are better than those of the identical lattice polycrystal counterparts. This work confirms the feasibility of designing superior energy absorbers with architected meso-structures from the inspiration of metallurgical concepts and microstructures.