Measurements of the shock response of porous structures formed by selective laser melting

Abstract

Studies of the shock loading of porous material formed by selective laser melting have the potential to improve our understanding of factors such as density, crush strength and pore size on energy absorbing capability. Samples have been manufactured in which a lattice is formed of rods of stainless steel angled at 45 degrees to the surface of a 6 mm thick x 64.5 mm diameter disc. The cell size is 1 mm and the density is 44.6% of solid. A 70 mm gas gun has been used to impact the porous samples onto solid stainless steel plates backed by PMMA windows. Het-V laser interferometery was used to measure the velocity time profile of the transmitted shock. The experimental results were compared with two and three dimensional computer predictions. It was found that the 2D simulations provide a good match to the time-averaged velocities but that the individual features in the experimental records are best matched by the 3D calculations. © 2012 American Institute of Physics.