Experimental and finite element method investigation on the compression behaviour of FCCZ and BCC lattice structures of additively manufactured Fe-3Si samples
ISSN: 1355-2546
Article publication date: 28 February 2023
Issue publication date: 2 June 2023
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to investigate the manufacturability of Fe-3Si lattice structures and the resulting mechanical properties. This study could lead to the successful processing of squirrel cage conductors (a lattice structure by design) of an induction motor by additive manufacturing in the future.
Design/methodology/approach
The compression behaviour of two lattice structures where struts are arranged in a face-centred cubic position and vertical edges (FCCZ), and struts are placed at body-centred cubic (BCC) positions, prepared by laser powder bed fusion (LPBF), is explored. The experimental investigations are supported by finite element method (FEM) simulations.
Findings
The FCCZ lattice structure presents a peak in the stress-strain curve, whereas the BCC lattice structure manifests a plateau. The vertical struts aligned along the compression direction lead to a significant increase in the load-carrying ability of FCCZ lattice structures compared to BCC lattice structures. This results in a peak in the stress-strain curve. However, the BCC lattice structure presents the bending of struts with diagonal struts carrying the major loads with struts near the faceplate receiving the least load. A high concentration of geometrically necessary dislocations (GNDs) near the grain boundaries along cell formation is observed in the microstructure.
Originality/value
To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study on additive manufacturing of Fe-3Si lattice structures. Currently, there are no investigations in the literature on the manufacturability and mechanical properties of Fe-3Si lattice structures.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to thank Fabian Lienen for sample preparation and Thomas Janzen for his assistance in the EBSD experiments. The Chair of Applied Mechanics (FAM) is acknowledged for providing access to ABAQUS CAE 2017.
Citation
Pramanik, S., Hoyer, K.-P. and Schaper, M. (2023), "Experimental and finite element method investigation on the compression behaviour of FCCZ and BCC lattice structures of additively manufactured Fe-3Si samples", Rapid Prototyping Journal, Vol. 29 No. 6, pp. 1257-1269. https://doi.org/10.1108/RPJ-06-2022-0190
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
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