I am Fadi Dako, a year 4 student at WSU, studying Bachelor of Engineering (Honours). In the selection process of research topics for the ‘Final Year Project’ unit, I was drawn to the topic “Auxetic Metamaterials”; The process of modelling and analytical simulations piqued my interest due to my extensive knowledge of computer-aided design. I have always been passionate about computers & engineering as separate elements, but after learning about the mechanics of materials as I progressed in my course, I became fascinated by the idea of materials optimization. Hence, my topic selection for the research, allows me to learn and provide information that will hopefully be of use to future manufacturers.
In the field of continuum material science, auxetic materials are some of the latest discoveries that allow for the improvement of energy absorption without the need for external aspects or modifications to the design.
This type of Meta-materials structures exhibits the counterintuitive behaviour of expanding in a lateral direction when subjected to tensile loads & compress laterally when applied to compressive loads. These properties offer numerous advantages in comparison to conventional/natural materials and structures.
The benefits of these materials have practical uses such as enhanced fracture resistance, indentation resistance, and energy absorption capabilities. As a result, auxetic materials have attracted considerable interest for applications in various industries, such as aerospace, automotive, & micro-scale medical equipment. Auxetic Materials are some of the simplest material combinations that allow for a great increase in energy absorption when compared to their counterpart conventional designs; That is due to the bases of creating auxetic structures, which retain a repeating cell structure & use a minimum amount of materials. Regarding this specific research, some parameters have been restricted such as repeating cell dimensions, material selection & applied forces, decreasing the variability of the results allows for much more dependable results. This research is conducted to determine the energy absorption uniformity at different operating temperatures, energy absorption uniformity & efficiency at different cell depths.
In exploring the auxetic material with this objective of comparison. Those materials are still in development, yet have proven to outperform the current standard. It is within reach to predict that these structures will be seen in a greater variety of applications ranging from construction to medical equipment.