Effects of cell size and orientation on compressive strength of WBK

This article presents the mechanical properties of mild steel WBK (Wire-woven Bulk Kagome) cores under compression. A method to measure precisely the average displacements of specimens is described. And analytic solutions of the equivalent strength and Young’s modulus are introduced. The equivalent peak strengths of the WBK cores in y and x-orientations were about 3/4 and 1/2 of that in z-orientation, respectively, and the equivalent Young’s moduli in y and x-orientations were about 5/6 of that in z-orientation. Regardless of the orientation or cell size, the measured equivalent peak strengths were always higher than those estimated by the analytic solutions which were modified taking into account the curved struts and the brazed joints among the wires. On the other hand, the measured equivalent Young’s moduli were often somewhat lower than those estimated by the corresponding equations modified accounting for the realistic geometry of WBK, because of the combined rotations of the small, triangular structures composing the in-plane meshes and the out-of-plane, helically-curved struts in the WBK cores.