Novel Titanium-based Lattice Block Structures

Lattice block structures are innovative periodic cellular materials that derive their outstanding mechanical performance from a structure of highly ordered internal triangles, rather than the properties of the parent material. They are innovations that can provide tremendous opportunities for weight and cost reduction in future aerospace and non-aerospace systems. To date, lattice block structures have been successfully fabricated for a number of ferrous and non-ferrous metals, but not extremely difficult to cast reactive metals such as titanium-based alloys. As titanium is one of the most important metallic materials in existence today, with growing importance in aerospace systems due to its superior strength-to-density, high temperature strength, and corrosion resistance, titanium alloy lattice block structures offer significant benefits to NASA and the industry if they can be successfully produced. Consequently, the purpose of this SBIR Phase II effort is to demonstrate the feasibility of casting full scale lattice block structures from titanium alloys using a proprietary investment casting process. A successful Phase II project paves the way to manufacturing actual lattice block structural components in Phase III and beyond, providing the necessary foundation for a more widespread acceptance of this unique technology in the industry.