Author(s): Violetta Rostobaya
Mentor(s): Dr. Ali Beheshti, Mechanical Engineering
AbstractThe goal of my research is to study mechanical properties of common 3D printing polymer PLA in composition with biomaterial hydroxyapatatite or HA. The reason why engineers want to fuse PLA with HA is to enhance mechanical properties of the polymer, make it stronger, more brittle, so that it can withstand high loads under compression. PLA in combination with HA are commonly used in biomedical applications for producing prosthetic bones and joints, which is why we want to make material as strong as possible, but also light and porous, so that it imitates structure of a real bone.
There is a nuance of how two components are mixed, since the manufacturing method is also a factor in the quality of the produced material. The differences of the methods in my research are how fast we can mix two components (fast or slow) and in what state PLA is in (liquid or solid), so the total amount of methods are four. For fast or speed mixing I use speed mixer and for slow mixing I use magnetic stirrer. To achieve solid state of PLA no actions are required: PLA already comes in form of solid pellets, and to achieve liquid state, PLA is dissolved using very strong dissolvent called DCM. The proportions of HA to PLA is 1%, usually mixed as 2 grams of HA to 18 grams of PLA.
After the materials for all four methods are ready, they are fed into the extruder machine, which shapes the polymer into filament through melting the plastic material at a high temperature of 180 Celsius degrees. The filament then is used to 3D print the samples shaped as rectangular cuboid with sides of 1 by 1 by 2 inches for indentation and compression testing.
The results of this research will show which manufacturing method is the most successful and effective in yielding the desired properties and hopefully will contribute to the knowledge of growing and expanding 3D printing technology.
I would like to thank you everyone who supported me while I was working on this project including Dr. Beheshiti, Dr. Bagheri, Dr. Lee and Office of Student Scholarships, Creative Activities and Research.
Thank you for watching and I hope this video was informative!
One reply on “Study of mechanical properties of 3D printed PLA+HA composite manufactured through different methods”
Thank you for sharing your work, Violetta. I look forward to hearing more about progress toward 3D printing of material that could substitute for bone. What is the next step?