Using Kirigami to make Ultrastrong, Lightweight Structures

Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA

MIT researchers used kirigami, the art of Japanese paper cutting and folding, to develop ultrastrong, lightweight materials that have tunable mechanical properties, like stiffness and flexibility. These materials could be used in airplanes, automobiles, or spacecraft. (Image: Courtesy of the researchers)

Cellular solids are materials composed of many cells that have been packed together, such as a honeycomb. The shape of those cells largely determines the material’s mechanical properties, including its stiffness or strength. Bones, for instance, are filled with a natural material that enables them to be lightweight, but stiff and strong.

Inspired by bones and other cellular solids found in nature, humans have used the same concept to develop architected materials. By changing the geometry of the unit cells that make up these materials, researchers can customize the material’s mechanical, thermal, or acoustic properties. Architected materials are used in many applications, from shock-absorbing packing foam to heat-regulating radiators.

Using kirigami, the ancient Japanese art of folding and cutting paper, MIT researchers have now manufactured a type of high-performance architected material known as a plate lattice, on a much larger scale than scientists have previously been able to achieve by additive fabrication. This technique allows them to create these structures from metal or other materials with custom shapes and tailored mechanical properties.

“This material is like steel cork. It is lighter than cork, but with high strength and high stiffness,” said Professor Neil Gershenfeld, who leads the Center for Bits and Atoms (CBA) at MIT and is senior author of a new paper on this approach.

Kirigami has been used to produce plate lattices from partially folded zigzag creases. But to make a sandwich structure, one must attach flat plates to the top and bottom of this corrugated core onto the narrow points formed by the zigzag creases. This often requires strong adhesives or welding techniques that can make assembly slow, costly, and challenging to scale.

The MIT researchers modified a common origami crease pattern, known as a Miura-ori pattern, so the sharp points of the corrugated structure are transformed into facets. The facets, like those on a diamond, provide flat surfaces to which the plates can be attached more easily, with bolts or rivets.

“Plate lattices outperform beam lattices in strength and stiffness while maintaining the same weight and internal structure,” said Parra Rubio. “Reaching the H-S upper bound for theoretical stiffness and strength has been demonstrated through nanoscale production using two-photon lithography. Plate lattices construction has been so difficult that there has been little research on the macro scale. We think folding is a path to easier utilization of this type of plate structure made from metals.”

To craft larger structures like robots, the researchers introduced a modular assembly process. They mass produced smaller crease patterns and assembled them into ultralight and ultrastrong 3D structures. Smaller structures have fewer creases, which simplifies the manufacturing process.

Using the adapted Miura-ori pattern, the researchers created a crease pattern that will yield their desired shape and structural properties. Then they utilize a unique machine — a Zund cutting table — to score a flat, metal panel that they fold into the 3D shape.

“To make things like cars and airplanes, a huge investment goes into tooling. This manufacturing process is without tooling, like 3D printing. But unlike 3D printing, our process can set the limit for record material properties,” Gershenfeld said.

Using their method, they produced aluminum structures with a compression strength of more than 62 kilonewtons, but a weight of only 90 kilograms per square meter. (Cork weighs about 100 kilograms per square meter.) Their structures were so strong they could withstand three times as much force as a typical aluminum corrugation.

The researchers developed a modular construction process in which many smaller components are formed, folded, and assembled into 3D shapes. Using this method, they fabricated ultralight and ultrastrong structures and robots that, under a specified load, can morph and hold their shape.

However, the researchers found that their method can be difficult to model. So, they plan to develop user-friendly CAD design tools for these kirigami plate lattice structures. In addition, they want to explore methods to reduce the computational costs of simulating a design that yields desired properties.

Because these structures are lightweight but strong, stiff, and relatively easy to mass-produce at larger scales, they could be especially useful in architectural, airplane, automotive, or aerospace components.

For more information, contact Abby Abazorius at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.; 617-253-2709.