American scientists develop stronger 3D printed composites

Two years ago, researchers at Purdue University were inspired by colorful hyenas to develop a new type of 3D printed material with superior performance. Recently, researchers collaborated with the University of California, Riverside to develop a new class of materials with superior toughness.

Colorful prawn can easily defeat or even smash other armored prey (mainly mollusks and crabs), and the damage resistance and excellent mechanical properties of these prey are also well known. But colorful prawn can be as fast as a .22 caliber bullet and has incredible power.

Studies have found that many marine crustacean shells and insect exoskeletons contain fibrous material and are arranged in a spiral structure like a spiral staircase. "This mechanism has never been studied in detail before," Zavattieri said. “We found that as the crack develops, the driving force for crack propagation gradually decreases, promoting the formation of other similar mechanisms to prevent sudden collapse of the material. I think we can finally explain why the material is so tough. “In terms of experiments, we Composites of this theory were validated using existing materials . ”

Nobphadon Suksangpanya, Ph.D. student at Purdue University; Nicholas A. Yaraghi, Ph.D. student at the University of California, Riverside; David Kisailus, Professor of Chemistry and Environmental Engineering and Materials Science and Engineering, University of California, Riverside; Zavattieri, in the Journal of Biomedical Materials Mechanics Behavior and Two papers on their wonderful work were published in the magazine International Journal of Solid and Structure.

Previous studies have found that spiral structures are designed to withstand repeated high-speed shocks. When cracks form, they follow a twisting pattern rather than spreading directly over the structure, causing fracture. An electron microscopy image of the University of California, Riverside shows that when a material is impacted, it does not form a single crack that continues to propagate, but creates many smaller cracks that absorb and dissipate the energy of the material as it impacts. The researchers created and tested 3D printed composites modeled on this behavior, using camera and digital image correlation techniques to capture crack behavior to study material deformation patterns.

Zavattieri said: "We are building a new mechanism for composite materials. Traditionally, when we produce composite materials, we put the fibers together, but this is not the best, and nature is teaching us how to do it. These Discovery can help us develop lighter, stronger and tougher materials for many applications including aerospace, automotive and sports."