Author(s)

Mao Yanjun ¹

Affiliation(s)

¹ American Community School of Abu Dhabi, Unnamed Road, Saddiyat Island, Abu Dhbai, United Arab Emirates

Corresponding Author

Mao Yanjun

ABSTRACT

Due to the deforming nature of their designs, most auxetic structures inherently lack stiffness. As a result, they are often unsuitable for applications requiring both high stiffness and energy absorption. Previous studies in this area have typically focused on a limited number of configurations without systematic, cross-study comparisons. This research aims to address this gap by improving upon several high-performing auxetic designs from prior literature and conducting a standardized comparative analysis. Four enhanced designs, based on promising configurations from previous studies, were 3D printed using PLA-CF filaments. Their compressive properties were then evaluated using a universal testing machine. The resulting data was processed to determine each design’s stress-strain curve, total energy absorbed, and specific energy absorption (SEA). The results indicate that the improved design based on the work of Tabacu et al. performed the best, exhibiting the highest peak stress and superior energy absorption. The analysis reveals that designs with support structures acting either parallel or perpendicular to the loading axis perform more poorly than designs that distribute the load more evenly. The value of this research lies in its standardized cross-comparison of different auxetic structures from different studies, all tested with the same material and parameters. This provides a clear benchmark for performance. Additionally, by enhancing existing designs based on methods proposed in other research, this study further explores and validates the potential of these advanced auxetic configurations. 

KEYWORDS

Auxetic Structures, Stiffness Improvement, Energy Absorption, 3D Printing, Compressive Performance, Load Distribution

CITE THIS PAPER

Mao Yanjun, Experimental Evaluation of the Performance of 3D Printed Composite Auxetic Structure under Compressive Loads. Journal of Materials, Processing and Design (2025) Vol. 9: 131-140. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.23977/jmpd.2025.090114.

REFERENCES

[1] Sengul, Mustafa , et al. "Real-World Applications of Auxetic Structures in Engineering: A Review." Structures, vol. 80, no. 80, July 2025.
[2] Bohara, Rajendra Prasad, et al. "Anti-Blast and -Impact Performances of Auxetic Structures: A Review of Structures, Materials, Methods, and Fabrications." Engineering Structures, vol. 276, Feb. 2023, p. 115377, https://doi. org/10.1016/j.engstruct.2022.115377. Accessed 9 Dec. 2022.
[3] Pereira, Felipe, et al. "Development and Applications of 3D Printing-Processed Auxetic Structures for High-Velocity Impact Protection: A Review." Eng, vol. 4, no. 1, 8 Mar. 2023, pp. 903–940, https: //doi. org/10. 3390/eng4010054.
[4] Gohar, Sohail, et al. "Performance of 3D Printed Topologically Optimized Novel Auxetic Structures under Compressive Loading: Experimental and FE Analyses." Journal of Materials Research and Technology, vol. 15, 13 Aug. 2021, pp. 394–408, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmrt.2021.07.149. Accessed 1 May 2025.
[5] Zhang, Xiang Yu, et al. "A Novel Auxetic Metamaterial with Enhanced Mechanical Properties and Tunable Auxeticity." Thin-Walled Structures, vol. 174, May 2022, p. 109162, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tws.2022.109162.
[6] Tabacu, Stefan, et al. "Complex Analysis of an Auxetic Structure under Compressive Loads." Sustainability, vol. 15, no. 8, 18 Apr. 2023, p. 6805, https://doi.org/10.3390/su15086805. Accessed 1 Jan. 2025.

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