LOW-SPEED IMPACT PERFORMANCE OF SURFACE-BASED ALUMINUM LATTICES

This paper presents the low-speed penetration impact testing experimental study performed on triply periodic minimal surface sheet-based structures. It is concerned specifically with the dynamic response of additively manufactured AlSi10Mg alloy samples towards a moderate strain rate impact loading. The low-speed impact response and penetration resistance can be crucial in the assessment of protective gear and aerospace structural components performance. The laser bed powder fusion (LBPF) additive manufacturing technique was employed to fabricate the samples into 40x40x20 mm³ specimens, and the localized penetration testing was performed on the samples through the usage of a weighted drop impact tower. This analysis compares and assesses the penetration resistance of three different TPMS topologies, namely, the gyroid, diamond and IWP, having a constant relative density of 28%. The penetration performance of these topologies was evaluated based on the peak force and maximum penetration depth results obtained from the impact penetration testing. The results acquired confirmed the full perforation of the IWP structure under the supplied kinetic energy of the impactor, while the gyroids and diamond specimen were almost entirely penetrated. The peak force values were marginally greater in the diamond structures than the other two topologies.