3D-printed “metamaterial” is stronger than anything in nature
Using lasers and metal powder, Australian scientists have created a super strong, super lightweight new “metamaterial” — but they got the idea for this sci fi-sounding creation from plants.
The challenge: Materials that are strong yet lightweight, such as carbon fiber and graphene, are used to make everything from medical implants to airships, and developing ones with ever greater “strength-to-weight ratios” is the goal of many material scientists.
In pursuit of that goal, some have turned to nature, looking for ways to replicate in metal the hollow lattice structures, like those in the Victoria water lily, that make some plants remarkably strong.
What they’ve been able to create so far using available manufacturing techniques have fallen short, though — an uneven distribution of load stress is a major reason these synthetic materials don’t turn out as strong as their natural counterparts.
“Ideally, the stress in all complex cellular materials should be evenly spread,” said Ma Qian, a distinguished professor of advanced manufacturing and materials at RMIT University. “For most topologies, it is common for less than half of the material to mainly bear the compressive load, while the larger volume of material is structurally insignificant.”
