Inverse Design of Architected Materials: From Mechanics-Based Methods to Data-Driven Methods

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• Professor Wei Tan, Queen Mary University of London
• Friday 06 December 2024, 14:00-15:00
• Oatley 1 Meeting Room, Department of Engineering.

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The potential of architected materials in engineering structures is immense, offering tailorable mechanical, thermal, and other multi-physical properties. However, their design space is vast, presenting challenges in identifying optimal configurations for specific functions. This motivates the need for inverse design methods. In this talk, I will first introduce an analytical approach for the inverse design of shape-morphing composites. This framework employs modulus grading and multi-material additive manufacturing to engineer composite structures capable of morphing into target shapes. Through a novel model based on graded beam theory, we predict tapering patterns that fulfil both tessellation and modulus grading requirements to achieve the desired bending stiffness. Modulus grading is realised by discretising the geometry and using the rule of mixtures to determine the volume fractions needed for specific cross-sectional moduli.

In the second part, I will present a new data-driven method for the inverse design of materials with multi-physics properties. Mapping physical properties to microstructural topology space is challenging, as diverse topologies can produce similar effective properties. Our inverse design approach effectively addresses this issue using a conditional Generative Adversarial Network (cGAN) method, enabling the design of architected materials with tunable permeability, diffusivity, and mechanical properties. Results demonstrate this method’s ability to balance permeability-diffusivity-mechanical synergy, enhancing the tunable range of multi-physical performance and enabling functionally graded metamaterials with tailored multi-functionality. In summary, we have proposed two distinct inverse design frameworks, which can be employed in a variety of applications involving multi-physical environments.

Biography:

Dr Wei Tan is currently a Reader in Mechanics of Materials at Queen Mary University of London. He joined Queen Mary as a Lecturer in Jan 2020. Prior to this, he was a Research Associate at the University of Cambridge, working with Prof. Norman Fleck. He pursued his PhD at Queen’s University Belfast under the supervision of Prof. Brian Falzon (2012-2016). With over a decade of research experience, he has contributed to fields in the mechanics of materials, computational modelling and multifunctional materials. Dr. Tan has published over 40 papers in prestigious journals (JMPS, EML , CSTE, Composites Part A/B), accumulating 2200+ citations with an H-index of 21. In recent years, he has secured substantial funding (over £1.8 million) as PI, including an ERC Starting Grant, an EPSRC New Investigator Award, and a Royal Society grant. In recognition of his outstanding research contributions, Dr. Tan has received several awards, including the ESCM 2024 Young Researcher Award, Queen Mary Faculty Research Excellence Award, Cambridge Bluesky Award and the Royal Aeronautical Society Bronze Paper Award. Additionally, Dr. Tan was featured among the World’s Top 2% Scientists by Stanford University in 2023 and 2024 (Materials).

This talk is part of the Engineering - Mechanics and Materials Seminar Series series.

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