Mechanical Properties of 3D Printed Polylactic Acid Parts under Different Testing Conditions

3D printing has been gaining much attention worldwide because of its capability and ease of use for different industries.Based on somebody's imagination and creativity, new parts can be created in a shorter time with cost effective ways.This study mainly focuses on the mechanical properties of 3D printed polylactic acid (PLA) parts exposed to UV light, and moisture and kerosene bath, and compares the changes of mechanical strengths with the original samples.Tensile test studies indicated that mechanical properties of the 3D printed parts could be drastically reduced when the prepared samples were exposed to UV light, and moisture and kerosene bath.After proper training, two undergraduate engineering students were involved in these studies and gained enormous hands-on research experience on the 3D printing process and degradation mechanisms of those parts under different conditions.These students also used these hands-on activities for their Engineer of 2020 requirements in the College of Engineering at Wichita State University.