Numerical Study of Geometric Scale Effects on the Modal Response of Lightweight Lattice Components

Abstract

Additively manufactured lattice components provide ultralight yet load-bearing frameworks through their periodic strut architecture [1]. Stiffness, damping capacity and mass are governed mainly by geometry cell size, strut slenderness and the global relative density ρ*, rather than by the bulk material itself. For dynamically loaded components, the modal spectrum is critical: natural frequencies and mode shapes determine resonance resistance and fatigue life, and their values vary non-linearly with both topology and mass distribution [2]. The present study investigates a lattice based on the fluorite unit cell (Fig. 1a–c). Different relative-density levels were obtained by adjusting the strut diameter, while three discrete cell sizes were retained, enabling a direct correlation between geometry, eigenfrequencies and mode ordering. The resulting correlations provide design guidelines for lightweight components subjected to cyclic and stochastic loading.

Publication
Book of Abstracts of the 3rd International Symposium on Risk Analysis and Safety of Complex Structures