Mechanical Performances of Aluminum Cellular Metal with Kelvin and Cubic Structure

The mechanical performances are studied for the aluminum cellular metal through finite element analysis (FEA) method in the paper. Cellular metal is a kind of complex structure with good performances using in many fields. The paper analyzes three different kinds of regular cellular metal structures, including two Kelvin structures and one cubic structure. The models of the three structures are established in CAD system. The mechanical performances under different directional forces - namely normal, 45-degree and shear forces - are simulated through FEA. Both the elastic and plastic performances are taken into consideration. The result shows that the stiffness of the cubic cellular structure is the strongest among the three structures. All the three structures could hold more normal force than the other two directions. The yield stress of the cubic structure is bigger than that of the staggered Kelvin structure.