A finite element study on the effects of disorder in cellular structures

• Published in: Acta biomaterialia Vol. 5; no. 1; pp. 381 - 390
• Main Authors: Luxner, Mathias H., Woesz, Alexander, Stampfl, Juergen, Fratzl, Peter, Pettermann, Heinz E.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Elsevier Ltd 2009
• Subjects: Animals; Biocompatible Materials - chemistry; Biomaterials; Biomechanical Phenomena; Bone; Bone and Bones - metabolism; Bone Remodeling; Cellular materials; Cellular Structures - metabolism; Compressive Strength; Deformation localization; Elasticity; Finite Element Analysis; Finite element modeling; Humans; Models, Biological; Models, Theoretical; Poisson Distribution; Polymers - chemistry; Stress, Mechanical; Cellular materials; Deformation localization; Finite element modeling; Bone; Biomaterials
• ISSN: 1742-7061; 1878-7568
• DOI: 10.1016/j.actbio.2008.07.025

The susceptibility to deformation localization of simple cubic arrangements of struts, which are a simple approximation of the micro-architecture in cancellous bone, is analyzed. The coherence between structural disorder and the tendency towards deformation localization is investigated and its relevance from a biological point of view is discussed. A systematic study on the spatial deformation distribution of regular and disordered open cell structures is carried out. To this end, finite element models are employed which account for elastic–plastic bulk material and large strain theory, and a methodology for the estimation of the degree of deformation localization is introduced.