Printability and properties of 3D-printed poplar fiber/polylactic acid biocomposite

Abstract

To efficiently and economically utilize a wood-plastic biocomposite, an eco-friendly biocomposite was prepared using modified poplar fiber and polylactic acid (PLA) via 3D printing technology for the first time. First, the effects of poplar fiber (0, 1, 3, 5, 7, and 9%) on the mechanical and rheological properties of the printed biocomposites were investigated. Subsequently, the printing parameters, including printing temperature, speed, and layer thickness, were optimized to obtain the biocomposite with superior properties. Finally, four printing orientations were applied to the biocomposite based on the optimized printing parameters to study the effect of filament orientation on the properties of the biocomposite. Favorable printability and mechanical properties of the biocomposite were obtained at 5% poplar fiber. The optimal printing temperature of 220 °C, speed of 40 mm/s, and layer thickness of 0.2 mm were obtained to produce the desired mechanical properties of the biocomposite with the printing orientation in a longitudinal stripe. However, the printing parameters should be chosen according to the applications, where different physical and mechanical properties are needed to achieve efficient and economical utilization of the biocomposites.

Effect of butyric anhydride modification on properties of wood-polylactic acid 3D-printed composites

“…The flexural strength decreased with the addition of wood flour to the neat PLA polymer. Similarly, it was indicated that the flexural strength decreased as a result of adding wood flour/plant fiber to PLA polymer (Narlıoğlu et al 2021;Yang et al 2021). It was reported that the flexural strength decreases with the addition of kenaf fiber to neat PLA and this decrease is due to the poor adhesion between kenaf fibers and PLA (Huda et al 2008).…”

Embracing Sustainability: The World of Bio-Based Polymers in a Mini Review

“…One promising root to make PLA suitable for 3D printing is to add natural fillers to the polymers, such as calcined shell particles (CSh), straw meal, and poplar fibers. The resulting materials are completely biodegradable and result in a higher tensile strength of the polymers [66][67][68]. Copper and lignin are used as fillers for impact resistance enhancements.…”

Optical properties and lampshade design applications of PLA 3D printing materials

“…Thus, they increased with the decrease of layer height. As the layer height decreases, the density of the specimen increases, the more the polymeric substance and crystalline aggregates inside it are dispersed, and the more the refractive index of light propagating inside the material fluctuates (Yang et al 2022). Therefore the scattering of light increases, the uniformity of light output increases, and the haze increases.…”