Influence of unidirectional/alternating deposition angles on the mechanical properties of FDM PLA/TPU blends

doi:10.19491/j.issn.1001-9278.2025.12.012

Abstract

Abstract:

This study investigates the effect of deposition angle on the mechanical properties of fused deposition modeling （FDM） specimens fabricated from polylactic acid （PLA）/thermoplastic polyurethane （TPU） blended filament. Specimens were printed with five different deposition angles （0 °， 45 °， 90 °， 45 °/45 °， and 90 °/0 °） to assess their impact on mechanical performance， failure mode， and surface roughness. The results indicated that deposition angle significantly influenced all these properties. The specimen with a unidirectional deposition angle of 0° exhibited optimal mechanical properties and the lowest surface roughness. Furthermore， TPU effectively toughened the PLA matrix， leading to an average increase of over 16 times （1 649.12 %） in fracture toughness across all deposition angles， albeit with average reductions of 20.72 % in tensile strength and 47.65 % in elastic modulus. Two distinct failure modes were observed under uniaxial tensile loading， which could be controlled by adjusting the deposition angle. Notably， a filament twisting phenomenon in the alternating deposition specimens was identified as a key factor contributing to their higher fracture elongation compared to unidirectional specimens.

Key words: fused deposition modeling, polylactic acid, thermoplastic polyurethane elastomer, mechanical property, failure mode

CLC Number:

TQ323.8

LEI Jingfa, WU Wenqi, SUN Hong, LIU Tao, WANG Lu. Influence of unidirectional/alternating deposition angles on the mechanical properties of FDM PLA/TPU blends[J]. China Plastics, 2025, 39(12): 72-78.

Figures/Tables 12

Fig.1. deposition methods

材料成分	沉积角度	试样编号
PLA	0 °	P0
	45 °	P45
	90 °	P90
	45 °/45 °	P45/45
	90 °/0 °	P90/0
PLA/TPU	0 °	PT0
	45 °	PT45
	90 °	PT90
	45 °/45 °	PT45/45
	90 °/0 °	PT90/0

Tab.1. Specimen parameters and numbers

Fig.2. Brittle section morphologies of PLA/TPU blends

Fig.3. Stress⁃strain curves and mechanical properties of PLA/TPU blends

Fig.4. Microstructure of FDM specimens

Fig.5. 3D morphology images and surface roughness

Fig.6. Stress⁃strain curves and mechanical properties of PLA

Fig.7. Tensile fracture images of PLA

Fig.8. P45/45 specimen at different strains

Fig.9. Stress⁃strain curves and mechanical properties of PLA/TPU

Fig.10. Tensile fracture images of PLA/TPU

Fig.11. Fracture process of PT90/0 specimens

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