Finite Element Modeling of Anisotropic Deformation Behavior of the Porous Materials Based on Microtomographic Images

This paper concerns the numerical modeling of deformation behavior taking into account the pores shape of porous materials. In the research were used porous sintered 316L stainless steel. These types of materials have wide application, among others, in the automotive, aerospace and medical industries, e.g. for the production of bone substitutes. The production process of sinters causes heterogeneous distribution of pores in different directions. This results in the occurrence of anisotropy in a deformed porous material. The use of X-ray computed microtomography allowed to the mapping of the real shape of pores in mesoscopic scale. Based on the obtained microtomographic images were generated three-dimensional geometrical models of porous mesostructures. The micro-CT device has a limited measurement accuracy, which results in a lack of mapping of small pores and fissures of porous structures. For this reason, in the study used two methods for compensating the influence of the measurement inaccuracies on numerical calculations. Received geometrical models were used for numerical calculation using the finite element method (FEM). Based on the numerical results, was determined the influence of the material inhomogeneity on its mechanical properties are and how the sintering process effects on the anisotropic deformation behavior.