Biomimetic 4D printing of dome-shaped dynamic mechanical metamaterials

The dome shaped structures of natural organisms can provide design inspiration for impact resistant structural materials. Most of the existing biomimetic dome shaped impact resistant materials are directly formed using 3D printing technology, and the samples cannot dynamically adjust the impact resistance properties in the various applications. Herein, 4D printing of fused filament fabrication is employed to form flat structures with different structural patterns via programming the printing process parameters, which can be deformed into biomimetic dome structures with dynamic thermal stimulation treatment. The thermal stimulation treatment can drive the dynamic transformation of 2D planar structures into 3D structures, and the higher the thermal stimulation temperature, the greater the degree of eminence and the denser the structure under the same experimental conditions. The thermal stimulation temperature and the mechanical properties of the structural samples show a certain positive correlation. In addition, different design structural patterns have different compressive mechanical properties. The more the number of circular units, the more obvious the energy absorption characteristics. The impact-resistant biomimetic structures can be applied to the surface strengthening and cushioning of various weapons, vehicles, heavy equipment, and launch structure.