Finite Element Modeling of Metal Lattices Using Commercial FEA Platforms

The introduction of geometrical features into standard solids result in cellular materials with unique performances. The deformation mechanisms originated by the introduced geometry may not be entirely captured by the current commercial FEM software; resulting in inaccuracies in predicting the performance of cellular metals. Additionally, the inconsistency of AM material properties will result in material models with uncertainty, thus, contributing to the inaccuracy of simulations. The present work shows a process for modeling the strength of EBM Ti-6Al-4V lattices structures; starting from the definition of the convenient experiments to generate the data for the development of material models at different orientation and finalizes with the assignment of these material models to the lattice FEMs. MSC Patran/Nastran is used in this work. Experimental results of the compressive strength of lattice structures are compared with those from the FEM utilizing the different material models created from the experiments.Mechanical Engineerin