Planar lattices with tailorable coefficient of thermal expansion and high stiffness based on dual-material triangle unit

The unexpected thermal distortions and failures in engineering raise the big concern about thermal expansion controlling. Thus, design of tailorable coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) is urgently needed for the materials used in large temperature variation circumstance. Here, inspired by multi-fold rotational symmetry in crystallography, we have devised six kinds of periodic planar lattices, which incorporate tailorable CTE and high specific biaxial stiffness. Fabrication process, which overcame shortcomings of welding or adhesion connection, was developed for the dual-material planar lattices. The analytical predictions agreed well with the CTE measurements. It is shown that the planar lattices fabricated from positive CTE constituents, can give large positive, near zero and even negative CTEs. Furthermore, a generalized stationary node method was proposed for aperiodic lattices and even arbitrary structures with desirable thermal expansion. As an example, aperiodic quasicrystal lattices were designed and exhibited zero thermal expansion property. The proposed method for the lattices of lightweight, robust stiffness, strength and tailorable thermal expansion is useful in the engineering applications.     

特定方向"零膨胀"的最小柔顺性结构优化设计

工程中很多承载结构必须面对苛刻的温度变化工作环境,如卫星天线、太空照相机和电子器件等。剧烈的温度变化引起较大的热变形,造成仪器信号失真,精度下降;同时温度应力也会造成结构破坏甚至失效,因此零膨胀材料的研制备受关注。近年来国内外很多学者对此进行了研究,设计出具有特定等效膨胀系数的微结构,但考虑到制备工艺的限制,这类具有复杂微结构的材料制备起来比较困难,成本较高;同时这类材料一般不具备足够的刚度,难以满足承载性能的要求。本文基于结构优化设计技术,采用拓扑优化方法直接设计出具备较高的承载性能和特定方向变形较少受热载荷影响的结构。本文提出采用多目标优化的方法设计圆环结构,使其具有较高的刚度和在热载荷下圆环内表面具有较好的热几何稳定性。由于用单相材料无法同时满足高刚度和低热膨胀的要求,因此假设结构由两种不同的材料构成,用连续体拓扑优化的方法设计三相材料(两种实体材料MAT-I、MAT-II和空材料)在设计域上的最优分布,使结构满足设计要求。由对称性,设计域取为圆环的一个扇面,将设计域离散成有限元网格,每个单元具有两个设计变量:实体材料的体分比和MAT-I在实体材料中所占的体分比,采用伴随法进行灵敏度分析,用GCMMA方法求解此问题,采用体积守恒的Heaviside密度过滤函数保证获得清晰的最优拓扑构型以及避免棋盘格式的出现。通过两个数值算例,表明使用本文提出的多目标优化模型能够得到特定方向"零膨胀"同时具有一定刚度的结构设计,且这种宏观结构尺度上的两种材料组成的拓扑构型相对易于制造。     

A micromechanical model for predicting thermal properties and thermo-viscoelastic responses of functionally graded materials

This study introduces a micromechanical model for predicting effective thermo-viscoelastic behaviors of a functionally graded material (FGM). The studied FGM consists of two constituents with varying compositions through the thickness. The microstructure of the FGM is idealized as solid spherical particles spatially distributed in a homogeneous matrix. The mechanical properties of each constituent can vary with temperature and time, while the thermal properties are allowed to change with temperature. The FGM model includes a transition zone where the inclusion and matrix constituents are not well defined. At the transition zone, an interchange between the two constituents as inclusion and matrix takes place such that the maximum inclusion volume contents before and after the transition zone are less than 50%. A micromechanical model is used to determine through-thickness effective thermal conductivity, coefficient of thermal expansion, and time-dependent compliance/stiffness of the FGM. The material properties at the transition zone are assumed to vary linearly between the two properties at the bounds of the transition zone. The micromechanical model is designed to be compatible with finite element (FE) scheme and used to analyze heat conduction and thermo-viscoelastic responses of FGMs. Available experimental data and analytical solutions in the literature are used to verify the thermo-mechanical properties of FGMs. The effects of time and temperature dependent constituent properties on the overall temperature, stress, and displacement fields in the FGM are also examined.     

Macroscopic elastic properties of regular lattices

In this paper we study analytically the elastic properties of the 2-D and 3-D regular lattices consisting of bonded particles. The particle-scale stiffnesses are derived from the given macroscopic elastic constants (i.e. Young's modulus and Poisson's ratio). Firstly a bonded lattice model is presented. This model permits six kinds of relative motion and corresponding forces between each bonded particle pair. By comparing the strain energy distributions between the discrete lattices and the continuum, the explicit relationship between the microscopic and macroscopic elastic parameters can be obtained for the 2-D hexagonal lattice and the 3-D hexagonal close-packed and face-centered cubic structures. The results suggest that the normal stiffness is determined by Young's modulus and the particle size (in 3-D), and that the ratio of the shear to normal stiffness is related to Poisson's ratio. Rotational stiffness depends on the normal stiffness, shear stiffness and particle sizes. Numerical tests are carried out to validate the analytical results. The results in this paper have theoretical implications for the calibration of the spring stiffnesses in the Discrete Element Method.     

格栅结构力学性能研究进展

格栅复合材料是一种新型轻质高强材料. 综述了格栅复合材料的周期构型特征和格栅结构的制备工艺. 归纳了二维周期格栅材料的等效刚度矩阵计算方法, 比较了不同构型格栅的基本力学性能, 介绍了胞元材料的微极弹性理论和格栅的强度与屈服面计算方法. 探讨了格栅的缺陷及其力学响应, 包括格栅的尺度效应、夹杂缺陷以及裂纹扩展特征, 介绍了波在格栅材料中传播机理的最新研究成果. 根据格栅材料在工程中的应用形式, 分类介绍了格栅板壳结构、格栅加筋板壳结构和格栅夹层结构的结构特点和破坏方式、设计优化准则和实验研究成果. 还归纳了作者所在研究小组近期在碳纤维格栅复合材料的制备、实验研究和理论分析等方面的最新工作进展.      

Thermomechanical properties of strut-lattices

The quest for light and strong construction materials in transportation systems has inspired significant research interest in miniaturized strut-lattices. In such applications, it is possible for these structures to be subjected to extreme loading conditions involving both temperature and pressure. We evaluate the effective thermomechanical properties of periodic lattices using an energy-based homogenization method under the assumptions of small strut-level deformation. The effects of multi-phase strut constituents on the behavior of the overall lattice are assessed with the aid of various topologies. Some examples that highlight different ways in which one could engineer these materials to perform unique thermomechanical functions are presented. These examples include lattice structures with zero and negative effective thermal expansion coefficients. The role played by temperature on multi-axial yield modes is analyzed. Also investigated are the pressure-induced nodal forces in non-symmetrically joined struts within a pressurized lattice at non-ambient temperatures.     

Thermal analysis of thin multi-layer metal films during femtosecond laser heating

Multi-layer metals films are widely used in modern engineering applications such as gold-coated metal mirrors used in high power laser systems. A transient heat flux model is derived to analyze multi-layer metal films under laser heating. The two separate system composed of electrons and the lattice is considered to take into account the electron–lattice interaction. The present model predicted the effects of underlying chromium’s thermal properties on temperature rise of the top gold layer. The effects of two adjacent and different metals with different electron–lattice coupling factors are analyzed for the heating mechanism of different lattices. The derived transient model combined with the two different conservation equations for the lattice and electrons are applied for the ultra short-pulse laser heating of a multi-layer film composed of gold and chromium.     

Thermal vibration and apparent thermal contraction of single-walled carbon nanotubes

It is of fundamental value to understand the thermo-mechanical properties of carbon nanotubes. In this paper, by using molecular dynamics simulation, a systematic numerical investigation is carried out to explore the natural thermal vibration behaviors of single-walled carbon nanotubes and their quantitative contributions to the apparent thermal contraction behaviors. It is found that the thermo-mechanical behavior of single-walled carbon nanotubes is exhibited through the competition between quasi-static thermal expansion and dynamic thermal vibration, while the vibration effect is more prominent and induces apparent contraction in both radial and axial directions. With increasing temperature, the anharmonic interatomic potential helps to increase the bond length, which leads to thermally induced expansion. On the other hand, the higher structural entropy and vibrational entropy of the system cause the carbon nanotube to vibrate, and the apparent length of nanotube decreases due to various vibration modes. Parallel analytical and finite element analyses are used to validate the vibration frequencies and provide helpful insights. The unified multi-scale study has successfully decoupled and systematically analyzed both thermal expansion and contraction behaviors of single-walled carbon nanotube from 100 to 800 K, and obtained detailed information on various vibration modes as well as their quantitative contributions to the coefficient of thermal expansion in axial and radial directions. The results of this paper may provide useful information on the thermo-mechanical integrity of single-walled carbon nanotubes, and become important in practical applications involving finite temperature.     

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 developed 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° 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.     

The structural performance of the periodic truss

Matrix methods of linear algebra are used to analyse the structural mechanics of the periodic pin-jointed truss by application of Bloch's theorem. Periodic collapse mechanisms and periodic states of self-stress are deduced from the four fundamental subspaces of the kinematic and equilibrium matrix for the periodic structure. The methodology developed is then applied to the Kagome lattice and the triangular-triangular (T-T) lattice. Both periodic collapse mechanisms and collapse mechanisms associated with uniform macroscopic straining are determined. It is found that the T-T lattice possesses only macroscopic strain-producing mechanisms, while the Kagome lattice possesses only periodic mechanisms which do not generate macroscopic strain. Consequently, the Kagome lattice can support all macroscopic stress states. The macroscopic stiffness of the Kagome and T-T trusses is obtained from energy considerations. The paper concludes with a classification of collapse mechanisms for periodic lattices.     

On band gaps of nonlocal acoustic lattice metamaterials: a robust strain gradient model

We have proposed an “exact” strain gradient(SG) continuum model to properly predict the dispersive characteristics of diatomic lattice metamaterials with local and nonlocal interactions. The key enhancement is proposing a wavelength-dependent Taylor expansion to obtain a satisfactory accuracy when the wavelength gets close to the lattice spacing. Such a wavelength-dependent Taylor expansion is applied to the displacement field of the diatomic lattice, resulting in a novel SG model. For various k...     

PHONONIC BAND GAPS IN TWO-DIMENSIONAL HYBRID TRIANGULAR LATTICE

<正>Absolute phononic band gaps can be substantially improved in two-dimensional lattices by using a symmetry reduction approach.In this paper,the propagation of elastic waves in a two-dimensional hybrid triangular lattice structure consisting of stainless steel cylinders in air is investigated theoretically.The band structure is calculated with the plane wave expansion (PWE)method.The hybrid triangular Bravais lattice is formed by two kinds of triangular lattices. Different from ordinary triangular lattices,the band gap opens at low frequency(between the first and the second bands)regime because of lifting the bands degeneracy at high symmetry points of the Brillouin zone.The location and width of the band gaps can be tuned by the position of the additional rods.     

The stiffness and strength of the gyroid lattice

Recently, a nanoscale lattice material, based upon the gyroid topology has been self-assembled by phase separation techniques (Scherer et al., 2012) and prototyped in thin film applications. The mechanical properties of the gyroid are reported here. It is a cubic lattice, with a connectivity of three struts per joint, and is bending-dominated in its elasto-plastic response to all loading states except for hydrostatic: under a hydrostatic stress it exhibits stretching-dominated behaviour. The three independent elastic constants of the lattice are determined through a unit cell analysis using the finite element method; it is found that the elastic and shear modulus scale quadratically with the relative density of the lattice, whereas the bulk modulus scales linearly. The plastic collapse response of a rigid, ideally plastic gyroid lattice is explored using the upper bound method, and is validated by finite element calculations for an elastic-ideally plastic lattice. The effect of geometrical imperfections, in the form of random perturbations to the joint positions, is investigated for both stiffness and strength. It is demonstrated that the hydrostatic modulus and strength are imperfection sensitive, in contrast to the deviatoric response. The macroscopic yield surface of the imperfect lattice is adequately described by a modified version of Hill’s anisotropic yield criterion. The article ends with a case study on the stress induced within a gyroid thin film, when the film and its substrate are subjected to a thermal expansion mismatch.     

Band gaps of elastic waves in three-dimensional piezoelectric phononic crystals with initial stress

In this paper, the stop band properties of elastic waves in three-dimensional piezoelectric phononic crystals with initial stress are studied taking the mechanical and electrical coupling into account. The band gap characteristics for three kinds of lattice arrangements (i.e. sc, bcc and fcc) are investigated by the plane wave expansion (PWE) method. Regarding the variables of mechanical and electrical fields as the elements of the generalized state vector, the expression of the generalized eigenvalue equation for three-dimensional piezoelectric periodic structures is derived. Numerical calculations are performed for the PZT-2/polymer and ZnO/polymer phononic crystals. It can be observed from the results that the fcc lattice is more favorable to create the stop band than the sc and bcc lattices for the piezoelectric phononic crystals, which has also been proved for the pure elastic periodic structures. Compared with the PZT-2/polymer systems, the band gap of the sc lattice for the ZnO/polymer structures is narrower. However, the widths of the bcc and fcc lattices for the ZnO/polymer phononic crystals are much larger than those for the PZT-2/polymer structures. The lattice arrangements and the piezoelectricity have remarkable influences on the stop band behaviors.     

Micromechanical analysis of lattice blocks

Multiphase lattice blocks with periodic structure are analyzed by a continuum-based micromechanical approach. As a result, effective stiffness tensors, global initial yield surfaces, global damage thresholds, effective inelastic stress–strain responses and critical yielding temperatures of lattice blocks are established. Applications are given for various types of elastic and inelastic lattice blocks made of an aluminum alloy. Furthermore, a lattice block with negative effective Poisson’s ratios is considered, and two types of two-phase lattice blocks that are capable to produce negative effective coefficients of thermal expansion are presented.     

轻质高强点阵材料及其力学性能研究进展

点阵材料是一种新型轻质高强材料, 同时具备形状控制、致动、能量吸收和传热等多种功能. 文章综述了点阵材料的拉伸主导型设计原则、点阵构型和制备工艺. 拉伸主导型点阵材料的比强度和比刚度明显强于一般胞元材料, 在低密度时质量效率更加突出. 根据材料的基本构型特征主要介绍了三维八角点阵以及夹层点阵材料, 比较分析了熔模铸造法和冲压折叠成型工艺的特点. 总结了研究点阵材料力学性能的理论方法和试验研究成果, 研究表明缺陷对点阵材料力学性能的影响明显小于一般胞元材料. 对点阵材料在形状控制与致动、传热和数值计算方面的应用研究成果进行了介绍. 文中归纳了作者近期在炭纤维点阵复合材料方面的工作, 给出了制备炭纤维隐身点阵格栅的探索性工作. 主要包括炭纤维点阵复合材料的三维编织工艺和二维点阵格栅的嵌锁工艺以及隐身点阵格栅反射率试验测试结果.      

Thermomechanical vibration analysis of a functionally graded shell with flowing fluid

This paper reports the results of an investigation into the vibration of functionally graded cylindrical shells with flowing fluid, embedded in an elastic medium, under mechanical and thermal loads. By considering rotary inertia, the first-order shear deformation theory (FSDT) and the fluid velocity potential, the dynamic equation of functionally graded cylindrical shells with flowing fluid is derived. Here, heat conduction equation along the thickness of the shell is applied to determine the temperature distribution and material properties are assumed to be graded distribution along the thickness direction according to a power-law in terms of the volume fractions of the constituents. The equations of eigenvalue problem are obtained by using a modal expansion method. In numerical examples, effects of material composition, thermal loading, static axial loading, flow velocity, medium stiffness and shell geometry parameters on the free vibration characteristics are described. The new features in this paper are helpful for the application and the design of functionally graded cylindrical shells containing fluid flow.     

Coupled experiments and simulations of microstructural damage in wood

In this paper, we explore ways to couple experimental measurements with the numerical simulations of the mechanical properties of wood. For our numerical simulations, we have adopted a lattice approach, where wood fibers or bundles of wood fibers are modeled as discrete structural elements connected by a lattice of spring elements. Element strength and stiffness properties are determined from bulk material properties. Damage is represented by broken lattice elements, which cause both stiffness and strength degradation. The modeling approach was applied to small specimens of spruce subjected to transverse uniaxial tension, and mode I transverse splitting. The model was found to be good at predicting the load-deformation response of both notched and unnotched specimens, including the post-peak softening response. In addition, the damage patterns predicted by the model are consistent with those observed in the experiments.     

A nonlinear mechanics model of bio-inspired hierarchical lattice materials consisting of horseshoe microstructures

Development of advanced synthetic materials that can mimic the mechanical properties of non-mineralized soft biological materials has important implications in a wide range of technologies. Hierarchical lattice materials constructed with horseshoe microstructures belong to this class of bio-inspired synthetic materials, where the mechanical responses can be tailored to match the nonlinear J-shaped stress–strain curves of human skins. The underlying relations between the J-shaped stress–strain curves and their microstructure geometry are essential in designing such systems for targeted applications. Here, a theoretical model of this type of hierarchical lattice material is developed by combining a finite deformation constitutive relation of the building block (i.e., horseshoe microstructure), with the analyses of equilibrium and deformation compatibility in the periodical lattices. The nonlinear J-shaped stress–strain curves and Poisson ratios predicted by this model agree very well with results of finite element analyses (FEA) and experiment. Based on this model, analytic solutions were obtained for some key mechanical quantities, e.g., elastic modulus, Poisson ratio, peak modulus, and critical strain around which the tangent modulus increases rapidly. A negative Poisson effect is revealed in the hierarchical lattice with triangular topology, as opposed to a positive Poisson effect in hierarchical lattices with Kagome and honeycomb topologies. The lattice topology is also found to have a strong influence on the stress–strain curve. For the three isotropic lattice topologies (triangular, Kagome and honeycomb), the hierarchical triangular lattice material renders the sharpest transition in the stress–strain curve and relative high stretchability, given the same porosity and arc angle of horseshoe microstructure. Furthermore, a demonstrative example illustrates the utility of the developed model in the rapid optimization of hierarchical lattice materials for reproducing the desired stress–strain curves of human skins. This study provides theoretical guidelines for future designs of soft bio-mimetic materials with hierarchical lattice constructions.     

The fracture toughness of planar lattices: Imperfection sensitivity

The imperfection sensitivity of in-plane modulus and fracture toughness is explored for five morphologies of 2D lattice: the isotropic triangular, hexagonal and Kagome lattices, and the orthotropic 0/90^° and ±45^° square lattices. The elastic lattices fail when the maximum local tensile stress at any point attains the tensile strength of the solid. The assumed imperfection comprises a random dispersion of the joint position from that of the perfect lattice. Finite element simulations reveal that the knockdown in stiffness and toughness are sensitive to the type of lattice: the Kagome and square lattices are the most imperfection sensitive. Analytical models are developed for the dependence of modes I and II fracture toughness of the 0/90^° and ±45^° lattices upon relative density. These models explain why the mode II fracture toughness of the 0/90^° lattice has an unusual functional dependence upon relative density.