Effect of notches on static and dynamic bending of 3D printed PLA and PLA reinforced with short carbon fiber

Additive Manufacturing (AM) is a process that can produce parts with complex characteristics, in a short time and at a low cost. Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) is currently one of the most popular AM technologies on the market. This work analyses the fracture behavior of both smooth and notched specimens of two different materials, Poly-lactic acid (PLA) and short carbon fibers (CF) reinforced PLA. The FDM technique was used to print the test parts; the three-point bending, and impact strength of the test parts were determined using the ISO 178 and ISO 179-1 test standards. The main objective of this research is the static and dynamic mechanical characterization of PLA and PLA-CF. Thus, three-point bending, and impact tests were performed, to make a comparison between mechanical properties of the reinforced and non-reinforced material. The experimental campaigns revealed poorer static and dynamic properties for the PLA-CF specimens regardless of the studied geometry compared with unfilled PLA.