Finite element analysis of flexural test of additively manufactured components fabricated by fused deposition modelling

Additive manufacturing (AM) is the industrial name of 3D printing, which can fabricate the complex geometry model easily. Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) is an AM technique used for 3D component printing due to its low cost and good strength. The mechanical properties of the FDM specimens were evaluated experimentally through a tensile test. Polylactic acid (PLA), which is a thermoplastic material, is used in present investigation. It is one of the suitable materials for the FDM technique. It is a biodegradable material produced from renewable resources. The Standard tensile test was conducted on the basis of the ASTM D638 standard for the PLA specimens with a 100% infill density. The flexural specimen was modeled in accordance with the ASTM D790 standard and the material properties derived from the experiments were used for finite element analysis. Further, the finite element analysis of the flexural test is performed to examine the flexural strength of FDM components.