Stiffness and strength of a semi-regular lattice

Abstract

Honeycombs and other lattice materials have the advantage that their topology can be designed to achieve unique combinations of properties, such as high strength at low density.  The work presented here is exploratory in nature: we investigated the mechanical properties of a two-dimensional lattice and compared its performances to other topologies.  Analytical expressions for the uniaxial stiffness and compressive strength were developed and validated against Finite Element simulations.  The results showed that the lattice considered is stiffer and stronger than the diamond lattice, and has a higher resistance to elastic buckling than the triangular lattice.