Structural nanocrystalline Ni coatings on periodic cellular steel

Abstract This study develops a new type of hybrid material that is a composite of a plain carbon steel micro-truss and a structural nanocrystalline Ni coating. The plain carbon steel micro-truss was made by a simple stretch–bend sheet forming method. It created a low density cellular material (∼5% relative density), combining the low embodied energy and cost of the starting precursor material with the structural efficiency of pyramidal micro-truss architecture. The nanocrystalline Ni structural coating was designed to provide both corrosion protection and inelastic buckling resistance. Because the ultra-high strength material was optimally located at the furthest distance from the neutral bending axis, only a thin coating of nanocrystalline Ni (∼50 μm) is needed to double the inelastic buckling resistance of the 1.13 mm × 0.63 mm plain carbon steel struts.