Schwarzite and schwarzynes based load-bear resistant radial cellular griding-based 3D printed structures

TL;DR

This study introduces a novel method to design gradient porous 3D printed structures using schwarzites and schwarzynes, demonstrating their enhanced mechanical properties through simulations and experiments.

Contribution

It presents a new approach to create gradient porous structures with variable density, expanding the design space for mechanically optimized materials.

Findings

Gradient structures outperform uniform density ones in energy absorption.

Mechanical response can be tailored via topology and porosity.

3D printed models validate simulation results.

Abstract

Nature-occurring structures exhibiting unique topological features such as complex and gradient porosity has been the basis to create new materials and/or structures. Most studies have been focused on complex periodic porous structures but gradient porous ones have not been yet fully investigated for stable structural designs. In this work, we have proposed and tested a new approach to create cellular griding structures, in which the mass density varies from the center to the borders, i.e, a radial gradient. To create these new structures we exploited the topology of two carbon-based families with different pore sizes, the schwarzites, and schwarzynes. We created fully atomistic models that were translated into macroscale ones that were then 3D printed. The mechanical behavior of the gradient structures was investigated by molecular dynamics simulations and mechanical compression tests of the printed models. Our results show that their mechanical response can be engineered (for instance, in terms of energy absorption, ballistic performance, etc.) and can outperform their corresponding density uniform structures.