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Additively Manufactured Dual-Faced Structured Fabric for Shape-Adaptive Protection
Yuanyuan Tian1,2,3, Kaijuan Chen1, Han Zheng2
1HP-NTU Digital Manufacturing Corporate Lab, Nanyang Technological University, 50 Nanyang Avenue, Singapore, 639798, Singapore.
Summary
Researchers developed a novel 3D chain mail fabric using additive manufacturing. This flexible material offers superior energy absorption and strength for wearable applications, overcoming previous limitations.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Mechanical Engineering
- Additive Manufacturing
Background:
- Fabric-based materials show potential for high-performance wearables but have limited mechanical properties.
- Existing materials struggle with the trade-off between strength and recoverability.
Purpose of the Study:
- To fabricate a novel dual-faced chain mail structure using additive manufacturing.
- To enhance the mechanical properties of fabric-based materials for wearable applications.
Main Methods:
- Utilized additive manufacturing and a novel interlocking pattern to create a dual-faced chain mail structure.
- Incorporated 3D re-entrant unit cells into the fabric design.
Main Results:
- Achieved high specific energy absorption (up to 1530 J kg⁻¹) and specific strength (up to 5900 Nm kg⁻¹).
- Demonstrated an excellent recovery ratio of approximately 80%, overcoming the strength-recoverability trade-off.
- The designed fabric outperformed existing materials for wearable applications due to synergistic strengthening and interlocking.
Conclusions:
- The novel chain mail fabric overcomes the strength-recoverability trade-off in flexible materials.
- Additive manufacturing enables the creation of advanced fabric structures with superior mechanical performance.
- This design approach extends the application of fabric-based materials for shape-adaptive protection and high-performance wearables.
