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 Smart Materials and Structures

Smart Mater. Struct. 32 (2023) 034006 (24pp) https://doi.org/10.1088/1361-665X/acb6d9

3D printed negative stiffness

meta-structures with superior energy
absorption and super-elastic
shape-recovery features
M Hosseinabadi1, E Etemadi1, A Serjouei2 and M Bodaghi2,∗
1
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Hakim Sabzevari University, Sabzevar, Iran
2
Department of Engineering, School of Science and Technology, Nottingham Trent University,
Nottingham NG11 8NS, United Kingdom

E-mail: mahdi.bodaghi@ntu.ac.uk

Received 15 December 2022, revised 9 January 2023

Accepted for publication 28 January 2023
Published 10 February 2023

Abstract
The aim of this paper is to create novel 3D cubic negative stiffness (NS) structures (NSSs) with
superior mechanical performances such as high energy absorption, shape recovery,
super-elasticity, and reversibility. The conceptual design is based on an understanding of
geometrical influences, non-linear buckling-type instability, snap-through mechanism,
elasto-plastic deformation growth and plastic hinges. A finite element (FE) based computational
model with an elasto-plastic material behavior is developed to design and analyze NSSs, saving
time, material, and energy consumption. Material samples and meta-structures are 3D printed
by selective laser sintering printing method. Material properties are determined via mechanical
testing revealing that the printing process does not introduce much anisotropy into the fabricated
parts. Experimental tests are then conducted to study the behavior of novel designs under
loading–unloading cycles verifying the accuracy of the computational model. A good
correlation is observed between experimental and numerical data revealing the high accuracy of
the FE modeling. The structural model is then implemented to digitally design and test NSSs.
Effects of the geometrical parameters of the negative stiffness members under three cyclic
loading are investigated, and their implications on the non-linear mechanical behavior of NSSs
under cyclic loading are put into evidence, and pertinent conclusions are outlined. In addition,
the dissipated energy and loss factor values of the designed structures are studied and the
proposed unit cell is presented for the energy absorbing systems. The results show that the
structural and geometry of energy absorbers are key parameters to improve the energy
absorption capability of the designed structures. This paper is likely to fill a gap in the
state-of-the-art NS meta-structures and provide guidelines that would be instrumental in the
design of NSS with superior energy absorption, super-elasticity and reversibility features.

∗
Author to whom any correspondence should be addressed.

Original content from this work may be used under the terms
of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence. Any fur-
ther distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the
title of the work, journal citation and DOI.

1361-665X/23/034006+24$33.00 Printed in the UK 1 © 2023 The Author(s). Published by IOP Publishing Ltd
Smart Mater. Struct. 32 (2023) 034006
Supplementary material for this article is available online
Keywords: negative stiffness, meta-structure, snap-through, energy absorption, shape recovery,
3D printing
(Some figures may appear in colour only in the online journal)
1. Introduction
The ability to absorb and dissipate kinetic energy by differ-
ent static and dynamic loadings or vibrations is an essen-
tial requirement for many engineering applications. Energy
absorbers like car bumpers and bicycle helmets absorb mech-
anical energies via permanent deformations of foams or
cellular materials mostly made of plastics [1]. In general, the
mechanical energy can be dissipated through non-recoverable
methods, such as auxetic structures with permanent deform-
ation in the plastic domain that unlike traditional structures,
auxetic meta-materials show lateral shrinkage under com-
pressive loading or lateral expansion under tensile loading
[2–7] or recoverable methods such as non-linear instability
[8, 9] and viscoelastic mechanisms [10, 11]. Practically,
energy absorbing structures should be lightweight and capable
of energy absorption in a reversible manner.
Negative stiffness (NS) structure (NSS) is a class of meta-
material structures designed to operate based on magnetic
interactions [12] and the buckling mechanism in its members
to absorb energy, maintain their original configuration, and
prevent vibration of structures through cyclic loadings [13].
During buckling in a member of the NSS, with an increase
in the applied compressive loading, a force-drop occurs, a
snap-through mechanism is activated in the structure, and
it reveals an NS behavior [14]. Such structures have been
used as actuators [15, 16], bumpers [17], energy absorbers
[18–22], and vibration absorbers [23, 24]. While other energy
absorber structures such as auxetics are disposable, NSSs have
the advantage of multiple-use applications [25–28]. Further-
more, the load bearing ability of viscoelastic materials is under
question [14, 15].
Qiu et al [29] proposed the possibility of using curved
beams to create the NS behavior. They developed analytical
equations to characterize the behavior of curved beams. Izard
et al [30] designed an NSS based on a curved beam. Their res-
ults showed that using a buckling beam as a member with the
NS property improved the energy absorption in comparison
with other conventional structures. Tan et al [31, 32] studied
the mechanical behavior of NSSs, including V-shaped, curved
and arched beams with different configurations, through ana-
lytical, finite element (FE) simulation, and experimental tests.
They concluded that the use of the curved and V-shaped beams
in NSSs exhibited better NS behavior than the arched beams.
Virk et al [33] designed cellular structures with zero stiff-
ness and NS effects. Their cellular structures demonstrated
a large deformation capability with zero stiffness and NS
regimes for a special range of strain rates. Yoon and Mo [34]
designed a new structure with a bidirectional NS mechanism
and conducted an experimental test to determine the effect of
2
M Hosseinabadi et al
the snap-through mechanism on its performance. Zhang et al
[26, 35] improved the energy dissipation capability of NSSs by
increasing the bending stiffness of a curved beam and main-
taining a constant volume to mass ratio. They designed two
types of lattices and hollow cross-sections as building blocks
for multi-stable structures. Recently, Ma et al [36] proposed a
multiple-use and self-recoverable NSS with tetrahedral motif
unit cells (UCs) and curved beams with an ability to dissipate
energy in three directions.
The 3D printing technology is one of the common high-
precision methods to manufacture conventional [37, 38] and
meta-material [38] structures. NSSs can be manufactured
through various 3D printing technologies such as fused depos-
ition modeling (FDM) [38–40], selective laser sintering (SLS)
thin, stereolithography (SLA) [41, 42], and multi-jet fusion
[43]. For instance, Ha et al [44] presented a 3D cubic NS
lattice structure including multiple UCs with a high energy
absorption capacity and shape recovery in the elastic domain
with 20% strain. They used SLS printing technology to man-
ufacture the structure and verified the results with FE method
(FEM). Ha et al [45] designed and printed an NSS including
multiple tetra-beam-plate UCs and investigated the mechan-
ical behavior of the structure through numerical and experi-
mental analyses. They concluded that the snap-through mech-
anism of the NSS is due to the nonlinear geometry of the elastic
beam members. Tan et al [46] designed disk elements on the
face sides of cubic UCs and introduced a 3D NS disk struc-
ture. They fabricated the structure using SLA printing method,
evaluated its mechanical behavior and energy absorption val-
ues under compressive loading, and compared their results
with those from FEM. Gao et al [47] introduced negative stiff-
ness UCs manufactured by SLS printing technique with the
ability to absorb energy and recover their original configur-
ation in two loading directions. They investigated the mech-
anical behavior of the UC and 3D cubic NS lattice structures
under compressive and tensile loadings through theoretical,
FE simulation, and experimental studies. Gholikord et al [48],
assembled the positive and negative stiffness members man-
ufactured by FDM method as new NSSs and evaluated their
energy absorption capabilities under cyclic loadings and veri-
fied the energy absorption values with FEM.
The literature review reveals that although NSSs have
been investigated in the recent years, their capabilities for
energy dissipation, super-elasticity, shape recovery and re-
usability have not yet been discovered. This paper aims at
presenting novel designs of 3D cubic NS UCs with new
features like high energy absorption, shape recovery, super-
elasticity, and reversibility. The design approach is based on
an understanding of geometrical effects, non-linear buckling-
type instability and elasto-plastic deformation mechanism. A
Smart Mater. Struct. 32 (2023) 034006
FEM based on the elasto-plastic model is established as a
digital tool to study geometrical effects on the structural beha-
viors reducing material waste and experimental efforts. Sev-
eral dog-bone samples and NSSs are 3D printed by SLS print-
ing technology. Experiments are first conducted to determine
mechanical material properties of the fabricated part revealing
that the printing process does not introduce much anisotropy
into the printed parts. Experimental studies are then carried out
to investigate novel designs’ energy absorption in response to
loading-unloading cycles. A good correlation between experi-
mental and numerical results is seen confirming high accuracy
of the FEM. FE solution is then applied to digitally design and
test NSSs mechanically. A detailed analysis of the influence of
geometrical parameters on the mechanical behaviors of NSSs
under cyclic loading is carried out. Due to the absence of sim-
ilar design and results in the specialized literature, it is expec-
ted that the results of this research will contribute to a better
understanding of the mechanical behavior of energy absorb-
ing NS meta-structures with super-elasticity and reversibility
features.
2. Materials and methods
2.1. Conceptual design of novel NSSs
This section discusses the design of five NSSs (namely
UC-1, UC-2, UC-3, UC-4, and UC-5) with NS properties.
Figures 1(a)–(c) shows UC-1 schematic of the side view, iso-
metric view, and one of the face views, respectively. All UCs
consist of 12 frame members, 6 plates, and 24 cross beams,
see figure 1(b). Beams are connected from two sides to the
corner of the frames and plates and the stalks are embedded
on upon the plates. All of them are placed on each side face of
the NSSs. In figure 1, the geometrical parameters include the
height of the beam (tb ), width of the beam (bb ), inclined angle
(α), length of the beam (Lb ), inclined height of the beam (hb ),
side length of the plate (Lp ), thickness of the plate (tp ), side
length of the frame (Lf ), and the thickness of the frame(tf ).
Table 1 also lists the values of geometric parameters of UC-1–
5. The inclined angle α is 15◦ for all NSSs. The snap-through
mechanism in NSSs is expected to be based on the buckling
of cross beams.
UC-1 is a basic design and is drawn according to [44] with
changing its geometrical parameters. The frame and plates are
designed with larger dimensions than the beams leading to
more deformation of the beams than the frames and plates to
prevent undesired buckling. The maximum displacements of
the UCs are 12 mm (εmax = 17.05%), and for displacements
greater than 12 mm, the frames would start to buckle and col-
lapse. The importance of maximum displacement loading will
be discussed in section 4.3.1.
Subsequently, based on the limitations of UC-1 in terms
of energy absorption and energy dissipation capabilities, new
NSSs with a high mechanical performance are designed here.
Figures 2(a) and (b) show side and isometric views of UC-
2, respectively. The difference between UC-2 and UC-1 is
that in UC-2, the geometric dimensions of the plates are
3
M Hosseinabadi et al
larger than UC-1 to delay the corner beams connected to
the plates from entering into the plastic region. In addi-
tion, the ends of the beams are chamfered to decrease the
stress concentration at the attached places of the beams and
stalks.
UC-3, UC-4, and UC-5 are then designed based on the
addition of different energy absorber members to UC-2, see
figures 3–5(c). The energy absorbers are proposed to improve
the energy absorption and dissipation capability of the UCs
and recover their original configurations in the loading direc-
tion. They include curved members embedded in the middles
of the UCs. Their design is based on the allocation of suffi-
cient space for expansion during the compressive loading. The
geometry of the energy absorber members should be designed
such that they can restore their original configuration dur-
ing the unloading process. Furthermore, energy absorbers are
designed from curved corners instead of sharp ones to decrease
their stress concentration and improve their energy absorption
mechanism.
It is expected that the energy absorption and specific energy
absorption values of UC-3 to UC-5 are improved compared to
UC-2 and UC-1. That is due to the fact that upon the applic-
ation the compressive load, the applied energy is transmit-
ted from the moving loading plate to the stalks and then to
the plates and finally it propagates through the internal and
external energy absorbing elements for performing buckling
in the elastic and plastic regions. As a result, by having more
energy absorbing elements in UC-3, UC-4, and UC-5, the
energy absorption values are expected to increase signific-
antly. Furthermore, in UC-1 and UC-2, the plates enter the
plastic region sooner than the other members during the com-
pressive loading. With the addition of energy absorbers to the
foresaid UCs, the stress concentration is expected to decrease
in UC-3, UC-4, and UC-5, and as a result they could properly
recover their original configuration. In section 4.2, the values
of the energy absorption and specific energy absorption are
presented and compared.
Figures 3(a)–(c) shows different views of UC-3. A camber-
arch as shown in figure 3(c) is added to UC-2, named UC-3, see
figure 3(b). The camber-arch, as an energy absorber member,
could exhibit a snap-through type buckling under compress-
ive loading and recover its original shape during unloading.
Table 1 lists the dimensions of the camber-arch.
UC-4 as illustrated in figure 4 is designed by adding another
energy absorber between the top and bottom stalks of UC-2,
named rhombus, see figure 4(c). Table 1 presents dimensions
of the rhombus members. The geometry of the rhombus is
designed in such a way that the UC-4 has enough space for
buckling to exhibit NS behaviors.
Finally, UC-5 as demonstrated in figure 5 is innovated
by adding another energy absorber with an DNA shape (see
figure 5(c)) with different structural geometries compared to
UC-3 and UC-4 to investigate the effects of the geometrical
parameters on the energy absorption, dissipation and shape
recovery capabilities. The advantage of DNA members com-
pared to the camber-arch in UC-3 and rhombus in UC-4 is that
by designing small curves in DNA member, the stiffness of
Smart Mater. Struct. 32 (2023) 034006
Figure 1. UC-1: (a) side view, (b) isotropic view, (c) face view.
the member and, as a result, the energy absorption and shape
recovery could increase.
2.2. Materials and 3D printing
Polyamide material, PA 12, with an elastic-plastic behavior
is selected as a base material to fabricate UCs. Lisa Pro Sin-
terit 3D printer with SLS technology is utilized to manufac-
ture tensile test samples and the UC-2 and UC-3. PA 12 with a
layer thickness of 0.125 mm is used for printing. The method
of printing is as follows: after designing a sample in the Solid-
works software, it is exported as printable STL files. After that,
a thin layer of the powder is spread on a printing bed, and then
a laser fuses it in the shape of the designed sample.
By performing some mechanical testing, it is observed that
after SLS printing of the samples, the mechanical properties of
the tensile samples are differed in 0◦ , 45◦ , and 90◦ directions
relative to the bed plate [49, 50]. To evaluate the mechanical
properties of PA 12, twelve tensile samples are fabricated in
three directions according to the ASTM D638 standard [51].
Figure 6 shows geometric dimensions of a standard tensile
sample. The room-temperature mechanical properties includ-
ing Young’s moduli (E0 , E45 , E90 ), 0.2% offset yield strength
(σ 0 , σ 45 , σ 90 ) and Poisson’s ratio (v) of PA 12 are determ-
ined by the Shimadzu® tensile testing machine and digital
image correlation (DIC) method (to measure axial and trans-
verse strains and hence Poisson’s ratio) at loading rate of
2 mm min−1 . Typical engineering stress–strain curves are
shown in figure 7 and the respective results are presented in
table 2.
4
M Hosseinabadi et al
Among the designed UCs, UC-2 and UC-3 are
manufactured using 3D SLS printing technology to check
their performance under two cyclic loading. Three UC-2 and
UC-3 are printed to achieve trustable results, and their mean
mechanical properties are reported. However, the testing val-
ues of fabricated samples exhibit close correlations. Figure 8
(a) and (b) shows the side and isotropic views of UC-2 and
UC-3 printed samples.
2.3. Mechanical testing procedure
The Shimadzu® universal machine is used to perform two
loading/unloading quasi-static compression tests on UC-2 and
UC-3 at the room temperature (25 ± 1 ◦ C). Figure 12 in
section 4.1 shows the deformation sequences of UC-3 through
the cyclic loading. Furthermore, the experimental movie S1-
EXP (see the supplementary section) shows the experimental
recording of the UC-3 behavior during two cyclic loadings.
In the loading process, the top plate moves down and com-
presses the UCs to a maximum displacement of 12 mm with
a loading velocity of 2 mm min−1 and then moves up with
the same velocity to start an unloading process. Furthermore,
the bottom plate is fixed during the cyclic loadings. The cyc-
lic loading is repeated twice for both UC-2 and UC-3. Dur-
ing the test, the machine applies the displacement (d). The
normal force (F) applied to the structure in all the loading
and unloading processes is detected by a 50 kN load-cell.
Force–displacement and stress–strain diagrams are obtained
at the end.
Smart Mater. Struct. 32 (2023) 034006 M Hosseinabadi et al

Table 1. Geometry parameters; dimensions are in mm. analysis, an element with the dimension 2.6 mm is selected,
Unit cell and the equivalent von Mises stress of the marked node in UC-
Parameters UCs 5 (see figure 9) is measured. Meanwhile, the element dimen-
sion is reduced until the von-Mises stress change is negligible.
Lf 44.7 Figure 10 shows the process of mesh sensitivity analysis for
Ls 2.4 UC-5 structure. Considering figure 10, the element size with
bb 8 a dimension of 1.6 mm is selected as a reference element.
Ds 14.6
The same process is implemented to mesh other designed
tf 4
tb 2
structures.
In this study, a static-general step is considered to simulate
UC-1 the cyclic loading of the UCs. To apply the boundary condi-
tions as shown in figure 6, a displacement-control loading is
Lb 23
Lp 16
applied to the top plate in the z-direction and the other five
degrees are constrained. Furthermore, the bottom area of the
UC-2, UC-3, UC-4, UC-5 bottom stalk of the UC is constrained to all six degrees of free-
dom (three translations and three rotations).
Lb 19.08
Lp 24
To plot the force–displacement diagrams for a designed
lb 5 UC, the sum of the element forces (F) and vertical displace-
lp 12 ment (δ) of a node in the top plate are evaluated, respectively. It
should be noted that the top plate nodes have the same vertical
Camber arch (UC-3) displacement, and it is adequate to measure the displacement
Rc1 14.1 of only one node. Again, all UCs are subjected to maximum
Rc2 13.5 displacement of 12 mm. Then, the applied stress (σ) and strain
bc 4 (ε) of the UCs are calculated by:
tc 2
F
Rhombus (UC-4) σ= (1)
A
LR 34.1
lR 32 δ
ε= (2)
RR 14.7 L
tR 2.6
bR 4 where A and L are the area of the top plate and initial height of
the UCs, respectively. In this paper, the A value is 167.33 mm2
DNA (UC-5) for all the UCs. After obtaining the stress–strain diagram, the
LD 28.3 energy absorption (E) values are obtained during the loading
lD 16.5 through equation (3) as:
RD 2.7
ˆε
tD 2
bD 4 E= σ dε. (3)
0

To conduct weight sensitive analysis of UCs, specific

3. FE simulation
The ABAQUS/standard FE software package is implemented
to investigate the mechanical properties of the designed UCs
under quasi-static cyclic loadings. An elastic–plastic mater-
ial model is selected to determine the mechanical properties
of PA 12. The elastic-plastic model is considered to investig-
ate the possibility of entering the UCs into the plastic region.
Since, the Young’s modulus and yield stress are approximately
the same in three foresaid directions (see table 2), an isotropic
material with E = 933 MPa, σ 0 = 28.7 MPa is considered
for UCs to simplify the FE simulation; also, Poisson’s ratio
ν = 0.33 calculated from DIC measurements is assumed.
The top plate and all components of each UC are meshed
using ten-node tetrahedral elements (C3D10). Mesh sensitiv-
ity analysis is performed according to [4]. For all the UCs to
ensure high accuracy for the results. For the mesh sensitivity
energy absorption (Em ) is investigated. This parameter is
defined as the ratio of energy absorption to the mass (m) of
the UCs as:
E
Em = . (4)
m
Furthermore, the hysteresis loops in stress–strain diagrams
which are enclosed during loading/unloading show the val-
ues of dissipated energy of the UCs. The values of dissip-
ated energy in a hysteresis loop, ∆E, are calculated using
equation (5):
∆E = E − E ′ (5)
where E ′ is the energy release during unloading. Non-zero val-
ues of ∆E in the cyclic loading indicate that the NSSs could
dissipate energy and have damping capabilities. The loss factor

5
Smart Mater. Struct. 32 (2023) 034006
Figure 2. UC-2: (a) side view and (b) isotropic view.
ψ is defined to investigate the ability of the NSSs to dissipate
and dampen energy as:
( )
∆E
ψ= . (6)
E during two cyclic loadings in both the experiment and the FE
Among the designed UCs, the UC with the highest ψ value
can dissipate more energy than the others.
4. Results and discussions
4.1. Validation of FE modeling
Figures 11 and 12 show the FE simulation and experimental
test of UC-3 for different displacements during one load-
ing/unloading, respectively. Furthermore, the behavior of UC-
3 under two loading/unloading cycles is recorded in the
S2-FEM movie (see the attached file in the supplementary
section). The other UCs show a general behavior to that of
UC-3. The detailed behavior analysis of the UCs through
FE simulation will be explained in section 4.2. Figures 13
and 14 demonstrate the force–displacement response for two
cyclic loadings for UC-2 and UC-3, respectively, obtained
from experiments and FE simulation. Furthermore, table 3
presents the force values at the first and second peaks and
the error percentages between the FE modeling and exper-
imental results in two cyclic loadings for UC-2 and UC-3.
Focusing figures 13 and 14 and table 3 reveal that the main fea-
tures of NNSs such as softening–hardening–softening beha-
viors, length of the snap-through instability, hysteresis loop
area, peak force value, loading history pattern, irrecoverable
residual deformation and shape recovery behaviors are well
simulated by the present FE model. The differences between
the experimental and FE results could be due to some random
defects introduced during SLS printing technology that make
the structures imperfect while perfect geometries are assumed
6
M Hosseinabadi et al
in the simulations and also visco-elasticity that is not included
in the simulations.
According to figures 13 and 14 respectively for UC-2 and
UC-3, two snap-through mechanical instabilities are observed
simulation. The structural behavior also changes from the first
cycle to the second one. It means that UC-2 and UC-3 may
experience some inelastic deformations that affect their beha-
vior in the following mechanical loading cycles. A similar
behavior would be expected for the other structures designed
in this paper. The behavior of UC-3 in the first loading cycle is
now analyzed to get a better understanding of the defamation
mechanism. Considering the behavior of UC-3 in figures 11,
12 and 14 and S1-EXP- and S2-FEM movies, it is seen that
during the first loading cycle, in the deformations less than
4.9 mm, the entire UC-3 first deforms uniformly in an elastic
manner. Then, at displacement 4.9 mm, four top cross beams
start to buckle, and the first snap-through-like mechanical
instability happens and as a result, the first peak in figure 15
is observed. The structure softens and the force drops drastic-
ally with an increase in the displacement until displacement
of 7.8 mm when the buckling of the top cross beams is com-
pleted. Subsequently, with an increase in the applied displace-
ment, the structure hardens and the force increases, and the
UC shows the capability to absorb more energy. At displace-
ment of 10 mm, the four bottom cross beams buckle and initi-
ate the second snap-through instability, and the force drops
again with an increase of the displacement. The two snap-
through-like mechanical instabilities could be associated to
the asymmetrical deformations during the mechanical load-
ing. Upon unloading, the meta-structures start recovering their
initial shape while an irrecoverable residual plastic deform-
ation remains into the structure. It is seen that the meta-
structure experiences a free-stress shape recovery at the end
of unloading and the force–displacement curve tracks the
horizontal displacement axis towards the origin. That is why,
Smart Mater. Struct. 32 (2023) 034006
Figure 3. UC-3: (a) side view and (b) isotropic view, (c) camber-arch part.
in the second loading cycle, the force–displacement curve
starts growing before the first unloading cycle curve. Plastic
deformation grows in each load cycle and is captured by the
simulation very well. The overall dissipated energy observed
in the experiment can be attributed slightly to visco-elasticity
and mainly to mechanical instability through compression and
plasticity. The mechanical behaviors of UCs and the influence
of geometrical parameters on their responses will be studied in
the next sections by implementing the developed FE modeling.
4.2. Mechanical behaviors of UCs under cyclic loadings
Figures 15(a)–(e) shows the stress–strain behaviors of UC-1 to
UC-5 for two cyclic loadings obtained from the FE analysis.
7
M Hosseinabadi et al
The stress and strain values are calculated using equations (1)
and (2), respectively. Furthermore, table 4 presents the val-
ues of E, Em , E ′ , ∆E and ψ for every cyclic loading. E and
Em are calculated for the first and second loading cycle using
equations (3) and (4), respectively. Also, the values of ∆E and
ψ for every cyclic loading are evaluated using equations (5)
and (6), respectively.
According to figure 15 and table 4, the response of the
fist loading/unloading cycle does not coincide to the response
of the second cycle. That shows the presence of the inelastic
deformation in the first cycle that makes the mechanical beha-
vior be cycle dependent. It is seen that all UCs dissipate
some energy during the first loading/unloading cycle. By
mechanical unloading, mechanical hysteresis, characterized
by noncoincident loading–unloading curves, is observed in all
Smart Mater. Struct. 32 (2023) 034006
Figure 4. UC-4: (a) side view and (b) isotropic view, and (c) rhombus part.
cases. UCs recover their original shape partially while some
strains remain in the meta-structure due to the plastic deform-
ation. The energy dissipation may arise from mechanical
instability and plasticity. As per the second loading/unloading
cycle, it is seen that, while UC-2–5 show hysteresis loop and
consequently dissipate energy, UC-1 behaves elastically and
releases all energy stored during loading upon unloading in the
second cycle as ψ value of UC-1 in the second loading cycle
becomes zero. UC-1 acts like a springer that releases all the
stored energy upon unloading. Considering stress–strain dia-
grams of second cycle loading in figure 15, it is observed that
while UC-2–4 experience some residual plastic deformation at
the end of second unloading cycle, interestingly, UC5 does not
8
M Hosseinabadi et al
produce any plastic deformation during the second loading/un-
lading cycle and dissipates the mechanical energy via the non-
linear mechanical instability. Therefore, it can be concluded
that UC-1 and 5 have a super-elastic behavior with a full shape
recovery feature in the second loading/unloading cycle. Spe-
cifically, UC-1 behaves like non-linear elastic material with
no energy dissipation while UC-5 behaves like super-elastic
shape memory alloys with a fully shape recovery response.
While the energy dissipation mechanism in shape memory
alloy (SMA)s is due to the martensitic phase transformation
[52, 53], solid-state non-linear mechanical instability in NSS
UC-5 dissipates the energy. UCs provide the designers with a
variety of mechanical behaviors and options to meet different
Smart Mater. Struct. 32 (2023) 034006
Figure 5. UC-5: (a) side view and (b) isotropic view, and (c) DNA member.
requirements. They can expand the design space for propos-
ing large recoverable energy absorbers and dissipaters with
different capacities. The first cycle could also be considered
as a training stage to produce shape memory devices where a
super-elastic behavior where a large energy absorption and/or
dissipation is required. From a numerical point of view, among
the designed UCs, UC-1 has the minimum values of Em , ∆E
and ψ for both the first and second cycles. UC-2 has more
values of Em than UC-1, and therefore it is concluded that
changing the plate dimensions of UC-1 to achieve UC-2 is
9
M Hosseinabadi et al
an effective way to improve energy absorption and dissipa-
tion capabilities. Also, against UC-1, UC-2 has ψ value in the
second loading/unloading cycle, and as a result, chamfering its
plate corners causes the original configuration to be properly
recovered. According to figures 15(b)–(e) and table 4, it can
be observed that, for UC-2 to UC-5, ψ values in the second
cyclic loading decreases in comparison with the first load
cycle. It implies that plastic deformation growth and mech-
anical instability reduce by further loading cycles for UC-2-4
and UC-5, respectively.
Smart Mater. Struct. 32 (2023) 034006 M Hosseinabadi et al

Figure 6. Geometry of the standard tensile sample designed according to the standard ASTM D638 [51] (dimensions are in mm).

Figure 7. Typical engineering tensile stress–strain curves for PA 12 samples printed in 0◦ , 45◦ , and 90◦ directions.

Table 2. Mechanical properties of PA 12 in different directions.

E0 (MPa) E45 (MPa) E90 (MPa) σ 0 (MPa) σ 45 (MPa) σ 90 (MPa) v

933 933 943 28.7 28.7 24.2 0.33

Figure 8. Side and isotropic views of 3D printed (a) UC-2 and (b) UC-3.

10
Smart Mater. Struct. 32 (2023) 034006 M Hosseinabadi et al

Figure 9. Meshing and boundary conditions of UC-5.

Figure 10. Mesh-sensitivity analysis for UC-5 structure.

The results in figure 15 and table 4 reveal that UC-2 has
higher E and less Em than UC-3 in the first and second load-
ing cycles. It means that the designing of camber-arch energy
absorber should be modified. Therefore, rhombus and DNA
members have been designed for UC-4 and UC-5, respect-
ively. Indeed, the higher values of E and Em in UC-4, and
UC-5 in comparison with UC-1 and UC-2 show that adding
foresaid energy absorbers could increase the E and Em values.
Therefore, the energy absorber members in UC-4 and UC-5
can improve the mechanical performance of NSSs. The reason
is that the energy absorbers have been designed to decrease
the concentration stress in the cross beams and plates and help
them recover their original configurations.
By comparing E and Em values of the UCs with the energy
absorber members (UC-3, UC-4, and UC-5) in table 4, it is
found that UC-5 has the maximum values of E, Em and ψ.
It implies that UC-5 can absorb and dissipate more energy
compared to other UCs. For more investigation, the stress–
strain response of UC-5 under three cyclic loadings is demon-
strated in figure 16. Also, E, Em and ψ for the third cycle
of UC5 are calculated and added to table 4. Surprisingly,
it is seen that E, Em and ψ remain almost constant for the
second and third cycles and stress–strain graphs coincide each
other. It is an interesting observation and implies that the
plastic deformation growth stops after the first loading/un-
loading cycle and UC-5 shows a stable shape recovery fea-
ture onwards. The energy dissipation mechanism after the first
cycle is completely attributed to the non-linear mechanical
instability through compression. The stable super-elastic beha-
vior in UC-5 has can be exploited for applications such as

11
Smart Mater. Struct. 32 (2023) 034006 M Hosseinabadi et al

Figure 11. FE simulation of UC-3 under a loading/unloading cycle.

strong-yet-flexible instruments. The large recoverable beha- response can be exploited to create structural polymeric ele-
vior also gives rise to large hysteretic loss during load cycles ments with high energy dissipation for stabilizing sensitive
due to the solid-state energy dissipation. This dissipative lightweight structures.

12
Smart Mater. Struct. 32 (2023) 034006 M Hosseinabadi et al

Figure 12. Sequences of UC-3 experimental test under a loading/unloading cycle.

4.3. Geometric parametric studies absorption capabilities, and maintaining the original configur-
ation of the NSSs [54]. As mentioned in section 4.2, UC-5 is
The NS member dimensions are effective parameters in the selected for further investigations. Therefore, the effects of the
activation of the snap-through mechanism, improving energy inclined cross beam angle, α, and DNA member thickness, tD ,

13
Smart Mater. Struct. 32 (2023) 034006
Figure 13. Force–displacement response of UC-2 for (a) first load cycle and (b) second load cycle from experimental tests and FE
simulations.
parameters on the mechanical performance of UC-5 are stud-
ied in sections 4.3.1 and 4.3.2, respectively.
4.3.1. Effect of inclined cross beam angle. As shown in
section 4.1, the cross beams are NS members that could
improve the mechanical performance of the designed NSSs
through the snap-through mechanism. Therefore, in this
section, the effect of the inclined cross beam angle, α, on the
snap-through mechanism and energy absorption capability is
studied. To examine the effect of α on the UC-5’s mechanical
stability, the force–displacement responses for the first com-
pressive loading are presented in figure 17 for α = 5◦ , 8◦ ,
12.5◦ , and 15◦ . It is seen that the force increases monotonically
with an increase in the compressive displacement for α = 5◦
and 8◦ . The mechanical behavior is completely stable during
the compression and the material response is hardening.
14
M Hosseinabadi et al
For further discussion, figures 18(a) and (b) exhibits a
plastic strain (PE) contour of UC-5 with α = 5◦ and 8◦ at
dmax = 12 mm, respectively. Following figures 18(a) and (b)
for the deformation of UC-5 with α = 5◦ and 8◦ , it can be
observed that the top and bottom cross beams do not have
enough space to buckle, and cross beams do not soften and
stay stable during the bending. It is seen that the frame and
members connected to the frame, including plates, and cross
beams stay in the elastic domain while the DNA member
enters into the plastic region for both angles of α = 5◦ and
8◦ at dmax = 12 mm. Plastic hinges are developed in the cen-
ter, nodes and the end of the beam due to bending moment
in the span of the beam and a high level of the stress at these
points. For α = 12.5◦ , because of the sufficient space for the
cross beams, they become unstable and buckle in the elastic
region. As shown in figure 17, the force values decrease with
an increase in the displacement with a low slope. In addition,
Smart Mater. Struct. 32 (2023) 034006 M Hosseinabadi et al

Figure 14. Force–displacement response of UC-3 for (a) first load cycle and (b) second load cycle from experimental tests and FE
simulations.

Table 3. The peak force values obtained from experimental tests and FE analysis for UC-2 and UC-3.

UC Peak Cycle Force (N), Exp. Force (N), FEM Err. (%)

UC-2 Peak 1 First cycle 138 127 7.9

Second cycle 78 72.7 6.8
Peak 2 First cycle 127 117 7.8
Second cycle 111 99 10.8

UC-3 Peak 1 First cycle 122.8 119 3.1

Second cycle 81 88 8.6
Peak 2 First cycle 134.4 124 7.8
Second cycle 114 100 12.2

according to figure 18(c) for α = 12.5◦ at dmax = 12 mm, the α = 5◦ and 8◦ . That is due to the fact that cross beams already
frames, plates, and cross beams remain in the elastic region, absorbed some energy, and a lower level of the energy is trans-
and the overall PE value of DNA member is lower than that of formed to the DNA member reducing the plastic defamation

15
Smart Mater. Struct. 32 (2023) 034006
Figure 15. Stress–strain response of (a) UC-1, (b) UC-2, (c) UC-3, (d) UC-4, and (e) UC-5 during two cyclic loadings.
growth. By considering the force-displacement response of
UC-5 with α = 15◦ in figure 17, it is seen that the force starts to
decrease significantly at d = 5.5 mm owing to the activation
of the first snap-through mechanism in the top cross beams,
and UC-5 with α = 15◦ exhibits an NS behavior. The second
snap-through instability occurs at d = 10 mm and the bottom
cross beams buckle. Figure 18(d) shows the plastic contour
of UC-5 with α = 15◦ at dmax = 12 mm. By comparing PE
value and UC-5’s response for different α’s, it is found that
the case of α = 15◦ experiences maximum snap-through-like
mechanical instability and its DNA member undergoes min-
imum plastic deformation at hinges. Finally, from an energy
absorption and stability points of view, a transient behavior
from overall stable bending defamation from α = 5◦ to an
16
M Hosseinabadi et al
unstable snap-through-like deformation with a higher anergy
absorption for α = 15◦ is clearly seen.
Figures 19(a)–(d) displays the stress–strain behaviors of
UC-5 with different α angles under three cyclic loadings for
dmax = 12 mm and tD = 2 mm. Furthermore, table 5 lists
the values of E, Em and ψ for each cycle. The results presen-
ted in figure 19 and table 5 reveal that UC-5 with α = 15◦
has the highest values of E and Em in all three cyclic load-
ings. Also, in a comparison between α = 5◦ and 8◦ , the val-
ues of E and Em in all the three cyclic loadings for α = 5◦
are larger than those for α = 8◦ . In fact, the stable harden-
ing behavior of UC-5 with α = 5◦ leads to absorbing more
energy compared to α = 8◦ that tends to have a nearly flat
plateau.
Smart Mater. Struct. 32 (2023) 034006 M Hosseinabadi et al

Table 4. Values of E, M, Em , ∆E, and ψ for different loading cycles.

( ) ( ) ( ) ( )
E J mm−3 Em J mm−3 × kg E ′ J mm−3 ∆E mJ mm−3
UC Cycle ×10−6 M (kg) ×10−6 ×10−6 ×10−6 ψ

UC-1 First cycle 0.0794 0.0280 2.84 0.0765 0.003 0.036

Second cycle 0.0762 1.72 0.0762 0 0

UC-2 First cycle 0.0900 0.0306 2.94 0.0484 0.0416 0.422

Second cycle 0.0604 1.97 0.0394 0.021 0.301

UC-3 First cycle 0.0929 0.0324 2.87 0.0504 0.0425 0.457

Second cycle 0.0589 1.82 0.041 0.0179 0.303

UC-4 First cycle 0.1050 0.0318 3.30 0.0754 0.0296 0.281

Second cycle 0.0849 2.52 0.0767 0.0082 0.096

UC-5 First cycle 0.1351 0.0319 4.23 0.0727 0.0624 0.461

Second cycle 0.0821 2.5455 0.0706 0.0115 0.14
Third cycle 0.0812 2.5454 0.0703 0.0110 0.136

Figure 16. Stress–strain response for UC-5 during three cyclic loadings.

Before a discussion about ψ values, it is necessary to dis-
cuss the maximum allowed applied displacement, da , for a UC.
For d > da during compressive loading, the frame of the UC
is subjected to undesirable buckling which results in the UC
instability. According to figure 20, the maximum allowable
displacement of the cross beams is 2b. In addition, the follow-
ing relationship should be satisfied to maintain the stability of
the UCs:
da ⩽ 2 (Ls + b) .
Considering b = a tan α. in figure 19 leads to:
da ⩽ 2 (Ls + a tan α) .
Because the values of a = 18.46 mm and Ls = 2.4 mm are
constant in this paper, according to equation (8), da depends
on α. Therefore, for UC-5 with α = 5◦ , 8◦ , 12.5◦ , and 15◦ ,
da values are 8.02 mm, 9.98 mm, 12.90 mm, and 14.68 mm,
respectively. It can be concluded that for α = 12.5◦ and 15◦ ,
it is possible to maximize the applied compressive displace-
ments (dmax ) to more than 12 mm. Therefore, for optimiz-
ing UC-5 with α = 12.5◦ and 15◦ , it is possible to increase
dmax value, however, to compare the results in an equal com-
(7) pressive displacement, dmax = 12 mm is considered here. Also,
among allowed applied displacements for different angles, da
for α = 12.5◦ is the closest to dmax = 12 mm.
As per energy dissipation, ψ values in table 5 show that
(8) α = 12.5◦ has the highest value and its value is greater

17
Smart Mater. Struct. 32 (2023) 034006 M Hosseinabadi et al

Figure 17. Force–displacement response of UC-5 for the first compressive loading for tD = 2 mm.

Figure 18. Plastic strain (PE) contour of UC-5: (a) α = 5◦ , (b) α = 8◦ , (c) α = 12.5◦ and (d) α = 15◦ for tD = 2 mm at dmax = 12 mm.

than the one for 15◦ in all three cycles. The reason is that and therefore, UC-5 with α = 15◦ cannot present its max-
da = 12.90 mm for α = 12.5◦ is closer than da = 14.68 mm for imum efficiency. Therefore, it is concluded that the highest
α = 15◦ to the maximum applied displacement (d = 12 mm), performance of the NSSs can be achieved by applying

18
Smart Mater. Struct. 32 (2023) 034006 M Hosseinabadi et al

Figure 19. Stress–strain behavior of UC-5 during three cyclic loadings for with tD = 2 mm and (a) α = 5◦ , (b) α = 8◦ , (c) α = 12.5◦ and,
(d) α = 15◦ .

Table 5. E,Em , and ψ for first, second and third loading cycles of UC-5 for a given α.
( ) ( )
α Cycle E J mm−3 Em J mm−3 × kg ψ

α = 5◦ First cycle 0.112 3.1728 0.454

Second cycle 0.0631 1.7875 0
Third cycle 0.063 1.7847 0
◦
α=8 First cycle 0.0813 2.3911 0.358
Second cycle 0.0549 1.6147 0.049
Third cycle 0.0549 1.6147 0.049
◦
α = 12.5 First cycle 0.0981 2.9283 0.463
Second cycle 0.0631 1.8835 0.164
Third cycle 0.0631 1.8835 0.164

α = 15◦ First cycle 0.1351 4.2351 0.461

Second cycle 0.0821 2.5455 0.14
Third cycle 0.0812 2.5454 0.136

displacements near to their maximum allowable displace-
ments. In the comparison between α = 5◦ and other angles,
ψ value for the first cycle at α = 5◦ is lower than others.
Besides, ψ value for α = 5◦ becomes zero for the second
and third load cycles but it remains constant and non-zero for
other cases. As the stress–strain graphs get back to the origin
at the end of the second and third unloading cycles, it implies
that the plastic hinges do not growth over these cycles. While
UC-5 with α = 5◦ shows a non-linear super-elastic behavior
with no energy dissipation over cycles two and three, other
α cases experience a non-linear super-elastic behavior with
energy dissipation due to the non-linear mechanical instabil-
ity. A decreasing–increasing trend of the specific absorbed
energy is seen when α value is increased. In a converse man-
ner, an increasing-decreasing trend of the loss factor can be
observed as α value is increased. These transient trends can be

19
Smart Mater. Struct. 32 (2023) 034006
Figure 20. Front view of stalk, plate, and cross beams.
Figure 21. Stress–strain response of UC-5 with different tD : (a) tD = 1 mm, (b) tD = 2 mm, (c) tD = 3 mm for α = 15◦ .
associated to the switch in energy absorption and dissipation
mechanisms. Our investigation of the further cycles shows that
E, Em and ψ remain unchanged for the fourth and fifth cycles
results of which are not presented here for keeping the report
brief.
4.3.2. Effect of DNA member thickness. Figures 21(a)–(c)
shows the stress–strain response of UC-5 under three cyc-
lic loadings for tD = 1 mm, 2 mm, and 3 mm, respectively
(α = 15◦ for all NSSs). Also, table 6 presents the values
of E, Em and ψ for each cycle. According to figure 21 and
table 6, with an increase in the DNA member thickness, the
stiffness of DNA part increases and the values of E and Em
increase for the first cycle. The stiffer the system, the higher
the absorbed energy. Also, with an increase in tD , the hyster-
esis loop area increases in the first cycle, and the energy dis-
sipation capability of UC-5 improves in this cycle. Therefore
20
M Hosseinabadi et al
tD = 3 mm has the maximum value of ψ for the first cycle.
From table 6 it is found that, for tD = 1 mm, ψ value becomes
zero for the second and third cycles resulting in zero energy
dissipation. By following figures 21(b) and (c) and table 6 for
the second and third cyclic loadings, it is found that ψ val-
ues of tD = 2 mm are a bit greater than those of tD = 3 mm,
and tD = 2 mm case results in a higher energy dissipation.
In fact, a lower level of the plastic deformation in the case of
tD = 2 mm compared to tD = 3 mm lets the meta-structure
experience stiffer mechanical instability and consequently res-
ults in more energy dissipation.
Next, the effects of both α and tD on Em are investig-
ated. Figures 22(a)–(c) shows Em values for the first, second
and third loading cycles, respectively. With an increase in α,
except for α = 5◦ , Em values increase for constant thicknesses.
In addition, Em for α = 5◦ is greater than that for α = 8◦ for
all thicknesses in each cyclic loading because as mentioned
earlier in section 4.3.2, the DNA member in UC-5 with α = 5◦
Smart Mater. Struct. 32 (2023) 034006 M Hosseinabadi et al

Table 6. Values of E and ψ for the first, second and third load cycles of UC-5 for different energy absorber thicknesses and α = 15◦ .
( ) ( )
tD Cycle E J mm−3 Em J mm−3 × kg ψ

tD = 1 mm First cycle 0.0938 2.9968 0.154

Second cycle 0.0793 2.5335 0
Third cycle 0.0793 2.5335 0

tD = 2 mm First cycle 0.1351 4.2351 0.461

Second cycle 0.0821 2.5455 0.14
Third cycle 0.0812 2.5454 0.136

tD = 3 mm First cycle 0.1836 5.6842 0.624

Second cycle 0.0807 2.498 0.137
Third cycle 0.0804 2.489 0.135

Figure 22. Specific energy absorption, Em , versus inclined angles for different energy absorber thicknesses of UC-5: (a) first cycle,
(b) second cycle, and (c) third cycle.

absorbs energy in the elastic region. In addition, according
to figure 22(a), in the first loading cycle with the increase
in the thickness, the Em values increase for all the inclined
angles. Also, considering figures 22(b) and (c), the thickness
parameter does not have a significant effect on Em values for
second and third loading cycles. Em has a maximum value for
tD = 2 mm and α = 15◦ for both second and third loading
cycles.
Finally, figures 23(a)–(c) shows the ψ values for the first,
second and third loading cycles, respectively. According to
figure 23(a) for the first cycle, with the increase in tD at a con-
stant α, the ψ values increase significantly. Also, for a con-
stant tD , ψ values become maximum for α = 12.5◦ , because, as
mentioned earlier, at this angle, da is closer than other angles
to dmax . By focusing on figures 23(b) and (c) for the second
and third loading cycles, it is seen that the difference between

21
Smart Mater. Struct. 32 (2023) 034006
Figure 23. The loss factor, ψ, versus inclined angles for different energy absorber thicknesses of UC-5: (a) first cycle, (b) second cycle, and
(c) third cycle.
ψ values become considerable for different thicknesses. From
these figures, it is seen that loss factors are zero for tD = 1 mm
at all inclined cross beam angles. In addition, in the second and
third cycles, DNA member with tD = 2 mm and α = 12.5◦
results in the maximum loss factor values. Furthermore, for
tD = 3 mm, the structure is subjected to a considerable plastic
deformation in its first load cycle that affects its energy dissip-
ation performance in the following load cycles.
5. Conclusion
The aim of this paper was to propose a new class of 3D cubic
NSSs that can offer high energy absorption, superior energy
dissipation, full/partial shape recovery, super-elasticity, and
reversibility in cyclic loadings. The NSSs include stalks,
plates, cross beams and a frame. To prevent undesirable buck-
ling of the frames, the thickness of the frames was higher
than those of the cross beams. In addition, to absorb high val-
ues of energy, energy absorber members with different con-
figurations were designed and assembled inside the UC. Dif-
ferent NSSs were designed exploiting geometrical influences,
snap-through instability mechanism, elasto-plastic deforma-
tion growth and plastic hinges. A FE modeling via ABAQUS
software package assuming an elasto-plastic material behavior
was implemented to design and analyze NSSs saving time,
22
M Hosseinabadi et al
material, and energy consumption. SLS 3D printer was used to
fabricate material and structural samples. Dog-bone samples
were tested and shown that mechanical properties are almost
independent of printing direction. The high accuracy of the FE
model was verified via the mechanical testing of 3D printed
NSSs. The computational model was then employed to further
investigate the mechanical behaviors of NSSs. The implica-
tions of the effect of inclined cross beam angle, and energy
absorbing member thickness on the mechanical response of
NSSs were put into evidence via a parametric study, and
related conclusions were drawn. It was observed that all NSSs
have a high capability of energy absorption and dissipation in
the first cycle via plasticity and instability mechanisms. In the
further loading/unloading cycles, depending on the geomet-
rical parameters and configurations, NSSs show super-elastic
stability/instability with high energy absorption and full/
partial shape recovery. The presented conceptual design and
results are expected to contribute to a better understanding of
the behavior of NSSs and to be instrumental towards an effi-
cient design of NSS for various applications.
The ways to activate snap-through mechanisms simultan-
eously in the top and bottom curved beams in the designed
NSSs could be investigated in the future research effort.
Also, 2 × 2 and 3 × 3 cellular NSSs based on the foresaid
designed NSSs could be further investigated to explore new
futures.
Smart Mater. Struct. 32 (2023) 034006
Data availability statement
All data that support the findings of this study are included
within the article (and any supplementary files).
Acknowledgments
The authors would like to thank the 4D Materials and Print-
ing Lab at Nottingham Trent University for providing software
and hardware facilities for conducting this research.
ORCID iD
M Bodaghi  https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0707-944X
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