About this Abstract |
| Meeting |
2026 TMS Annual Meeting & Exhibition
|
| Symposium
|
Additive Manufacturing Fatigue and Fracture
|
| Presentation Title |
F-3: Bio-inspired Composites with Hierarchically-Structured Fractal Interfaces: Design, Additive Manufacturing, Mechanical Testing, and Toughening Mechanisms |
| Author(s) |
Pei-Rong Lin, Po-Yu Chen |
| On-Site Speaker (Planned) |
Pei-Rong Lin |
| Abstract Scope |
Inspired by ammonite shells, glass sponges, and abalone nacre, we investigated hierarchically-structured fractal composites composed of rigid/soft polymeric materials fabricated via advanced multi-material additive manufacturing. Composites with varying fractal morphology, hierarchical orders (n = 0 to 3) and tilting angles (0°, 30°, 45°, 60°) were designed and tested to evaluate their mechanical performance. Tensile tests showed that samples with n = 2 hierarchical level, non-tilted design achieved the highest peak stress, toughness, and fracture strain with longer crack propagation paths. Digital Image Correlation (DIC) and SEM analyses revealed crack deflection and interface-induced toughening mechanisms. Cyclic testing demonstrated how fractal geometries influenced crack initiation and growth. Tearing tests further highlighted the composites’ ability to dissipate energy through tortuous failure paths. Particle-based simulations confirmed stress redistribution and accurately predicted the fracture behavior. This work demonstrated a bio-inspired strategy for designing advanced composites with enhanced fracture resistance through controlled fractal geometry and hierarchy. |
| Proceedings Inclusion? |
Planned: |
| Keywords |
Additive Manufacturing, Composites, Mechanical Properties |