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Investigation of mechanical and printing properties of poly(lactic acid) and its composite filaments used in 3D printing

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Abstract

In this work, we investigated how the mechanical and printing properties of poly(lactic acid) (PLA) and its composite filaments, which are increasingly used in 3D printers, changed in a humid environment. PLA filament, PLA/Graphite, and PLA/polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) composite filaments were used in these experiments. The filaments were exposed to 80% relative humidity for 15 days, and standard dog-bone specimens were printed by these filaments. Tensile tests were applied to the filaments and printed specimens, Fourier transform infrared spectrometry (FTIR) was performed, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) micrographs of the specimens and their fractured surfaces were obtained. The tensile strength of the PLA filament, PLA/Graphite, and PLA/PHB composite filaments exposed to a humid environment decreased compared with the reference specimens. When the experiments were evaluated, it was observed that the print quality and tensile strength decreased in dog-bone specimens printed from PLA filament and PLA/Graphite composite filament exposed to a humid environment. The tensile strength decreased in the PLA specimen by 29.5% and the PLA/Graphite composite specimen by 28% compared with the reference specimens. In contrast, for dog-bone specimens printed from PLA/PHB composite filaments, print quality and tensile strength increased. The tensile strength increased by 8.5% in PLA/PHB composite specimens. The band changes in the FTIR spectra of the dog bone and conditioned specimens produced from PLA filament, PLA/Graphite, and PLA/PHB composite filaments showed the chemical changes in the specimens.

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Data availability

The datasets generated and/or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank the Faculty of Education, Trakya University for all facilities. This work was supported by the Trakya University Scientific Research Projects (TÜBAP) with project number (2019/284) Trakya University, Edirne, Türkiye.

Funding

This work was supported by the Trakya University Scientific Research Projects (TÜBAP) Project number (2019/284).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Applied Sciences and Technology, Institute of Science, Trakya University, Edirne, Turkey

    Gökçen Şahin

  2. Department of Mathematics and Science Education, Faculty of Education, Trakya University, Edirne, Turkey

    Hasan Özyıldırım

  3. Vocational College of Technical Sciences, Trakya University, Edirne, Turkey

    Anıl Şahin

Authors
  1. Gökçen Şahin
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  2. Hasan Özyıldırım
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Contributions

All authors contributed to the study’s conception and design. Material preparation, data collection, and analysis were performed by GŞ, HÖ and AŞ. The first draft of the manuscript was written by GŞ and all authors have commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors have read and approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Hasan Özyıldırım.

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Şahin, G., Özyıldırım, H. & Şahin, A. Investigation of mechanical and printing properties of poly(lactic acid) and its composite filaments used in 3D printing. Iran Polym J 33, 79–91 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13726-023-01240-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13726-023-01240-2

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