Additively manufactured lattice structures with controlled transverse isotropy for orthopedic porous implants.

Additively manufactured lattice structures enable the design of tissue scaffolds with tailored mechanical properties, which can be implemented in porous biomaterials. The adaptation of bone to physiological loads results in anisotropic bone tissue properties which are optimized for site-specific loads; therefore, some bone sites are stiffer and stronger along the principal load direction compared to other orientations. In this work, a semi-analytical model was developed for the design of transversely isotropic lattice structures that can mimic the anisotropy characteristics of different types of bone tissue. Several design possibilities were explored, and a particular unit cell, which was best suited for additive manufacturing was further analyzed. The design of the unit cell was parameterized and in-silico analysis was performed via Finite Element Analysis. The structures were manufactured additively in metal and tested under compressive loads in different orientations. Finite element analysis showed good correlation with the semi-analytical model, especially for elastic constants with low relative densities. The anisotropy measured experimentally showed a variable accuracy, highlighting the deviations from designs to additively manufactured parts. Overall, the proposed model enables to exploit the anisotropy of lattice structures to design lighter scaffolds with higher porosity and increased permeability by aligning the scaffold with the principal direction of the load.

Analytical model of the elastic behavior of a modified face-centered cubic lattice structure.

As result of the advances made in additive manufacturing in recent years, the design of porous materials with controlled mechanical properties has gained importance due to their capability to offer case-specific solutions in multiple applications. In terms of biomaterials, the use of lattice structures provides a considerable variety of mechanical and geometric properties that can enhance osseointegration and reduce stress shielding. In this paper, the elastic response of a modified face-centered cubic (FCC) unit cell was studied, and analytical expressions for macroscopic effective Young's moduli, shear moduli and Poisson's ratios were obtained, thus providing the necessary parameters for the homogenization of the unit cell. The analytical expressions of the homogenization parameters open the possibility for implementation in other research fields, such as topology optimization. Timoshenko beam theory was used to model the struts of the modified FCC unit cell and a finite element analysis using shear flexible beam elements was performed to assess the accuracy of the analytical expressions. In addition to modelling the bending of the beams, axial and torsional displacements were also considered for a more detailed analysis. It can be concluded that the expressions obtained represent the elastic behavior of the modified FCC unit cell with high accuracy. Finally, the elastic response was further analyzed by introducing variability in the aspect ratio in order to enable the design of unit cells with controlled anisotropy.