Additively Manufactured Mechanical Metamaterials for Blast and Impact Protection

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Additive Manufacturing presents new opportunities for the design of high performance cellular materialsfor impact energy absorption. Recent research has demonstrated the performance potential of metalliccellular materials produced using Selective Laser Melting AM processes under high strain rate loadingconditions. The proposed project will pursue two novel areas of research: (1) AM processing of cellularmaterials containing Shape Memory Alloy, and (2) application of this understanding to develop smartimpact energy absorbing materials capable of configurational change. Two novel and challengingapplication areas are anticipated within the Space Industry: (a) reusable energy absorbers for vehiclelanding impacts; (b) self-healing protection against space debris impact. The research will be carried outas a PhD project, consisting of two phases. (1) Extend current understanding of the coupling betweencellular geometry, AM processing parameters and high strain rate mechanical properties to SMA. Resultsfor SMA will be compared with more established alloys. (2) Develop strategies for the design of AMcellular materials incorporating SMA, that achieve both effective impact protection and geometryreconfiguration. This will consider any trade-off between these functions, and design optimisation. Theresearch will focus first on impact scenarios relevant for application (a), and will then be extended toconsider the significantly higher impact velocity regime of application (b).