Mechanical Characterization of Polylactic Acid, Polycarbonate, and Carbon Fiber-Reinforced Polyamide Specimens Fabricated by Fused Deposition Modeling

Abstract This paper investigates the mechanical behavior of polylactic acid (PLA), polycarbonate (PC) and carbon fiber-reinforced high-temperature polyamide (PAHT-CF) specimens fabricated by fused deposition modeling (FDM). PC and PAHT-CF are considered engineering grade materials that exhibit good mechanical properties, suitable for rapid prototypes and functional parts fabrication. PLA, a popular, commonly used FDM material, has been included in this work for comparison purposes. The purpose of the present study is to provide comprehensive experimental data on the materials’ critical properties since limited data is available in the existing literature and there is a lack of comparative analysis regarding the three materials. Mechanical characterization has been carried out on the basis of tensile, three-point bending, impact and creep tests. Measurements of hardness, density and porosity were conducted, and the specimens’ morphology was examined through microscopy. The results showed that the highest strength and flexural modulus of elasticity were observed for the PAHT-CF specimens followed by PC and PLA. PC specimens exhibited the highest impact resistance followed by PAHT-CF and PLA. The highest stage II creep resistance was achieved by PAHT-CF followed by PC and PLA. The optical and scanning electron microscopy images revealed that specimens’ quality depends on the printing parameters.