Compensated beam model for efficient and accurate FE elastic simulation of strut-based lattice structures

• A workflow is proposed to compute compensation coefficients for beam lattice models. • Compensation values are identified for four key cell topologies with varying porosity. • The model outperforms literature existing models in accuracy. • The approach is validated through experiments on different materials and cells. Lattice structures have gained interest across various industries due to their remarkable strength-to-weight ratio and tunable mechanical properties. To fully exploit the potential of these metamaterials in the industrial field, nevertheless, the determination of an accurate and efficient simulation technique to estimate fatigue life poses significant challenges. While methods like asymptotic homogenization offer efficient alternatives, it falls short in capturing lattice real topology and therefore localized effects triggering fatigue failure. To overcome this issue, other computational efficient simulations techniques able to fully consider lattice topology, such as the compensated beam models, are developed. The challenge in this technique is to properly tune the model elastic properties to match the experimental outcomes. This paper introduces a formal methodology able to compute compensation coefficient for beam models across different cell topology, dimensions and porosities. By smartly compensating for stiffness variations at nodal junctions, the compensated beam simulation technique enhances the accuracy of beam models without sacrificing computational speed. Comparative simulations with traditional FE methods and validation against experimental data confirm that the compensated beam model significantly improves accuracy while maintaining computational efficiency critical for large volumes application.