Fatigue assessment and damage evolution of additively manufactured Ti–6Al–4V lattice structures for medical applications

The possibility of patient-specific implants, using additive manufacturing, has led to a steady increase in demand, especially during the last decade. With the opportunities of layer-wise manufacturing, nearly all design and geometrical property requirements for patient-individual manufacturing can be fulfilled. Complex lattice structures, such as triply-period-minimal-surfaces (TPMS), are commonly used in medical applications to overcome problems of stress shielding. In this study, the mechanical properties and the fatigue damage evolution will be characterized using the digital image correlation (DIC) and direct current potential drop (DCPD) method. This is complemented by microstructural and computed tomography methods for a holistic characterization of the damage mechanisms and defect structure to improve the comprehension of failure mechanisms in complex lattice structures.