2023/08/28
Keio University
Artificial materials, commonly known as mechanical metamaterials, are created by regularly assembling microscopic parts to achieve mechanical properties not found in nature. Their tunable functionality has attracted much attention in recent years. While various types have been proposed, many are designed to operate predictably through precise programming, and the effects of randomness and imperfections in their constituent elements on mechanical performance have not been well understood.
Senior Assistant Professor Tomohiko Sano from the Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Science and Technology at Keio University, Tomoyuki Kawada (graduated March 2022), and a research group from the French National Institute for Research in Digital Science and Technology (Inria) focused on the mechanical performance of randomly stacked cylindrical shells. Combining physical experiments and simulations based on computer graphics, they revealed that these shells can absorb and store mechanical energy when compressed. This is achieved by leveraging large deformations, rearrangements, snap-fits, and friction of the shells. Despite the random arrangement of the shells, the system was found to exhibit statistically robust mechanical performance due to friction and geometry. These findings suggest that the rearrangement of supple components can lead to diverse and predictable mechanical responses.
These research findings were published in the international journal "Communications Materials" on August 25, 2023 (London time).
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