ABSTRACT
This chapter presents the influences of several production variables on the mechanical properties of specimens manufactured using fused deposition modeling with polylactic acid (PLA) as a media and relates the practical and experimental implications of these as related to stiffness, strength, ductility, and generalized loading. The methodology used exemplifies both the nuances of component production using additive manufacturing methods and shows a refined and streamlined method for determining processing parameter influence on mechanical properties, so as to optimize component production across additive manufacturing technologies. The Taguchi method of design of experiments curtails extensive experimentation as encountered when using a full factorial experiment. Drawing out the mechanical properties of the candidate solid, PLA, is accomplished via experimental mechanics of materials. Design of experiments was used to construct a set of experiments by which the effects of fused deposition modelling (FDM) printer settings on tensile and fracture properties of components produced via FDM using PLA could be explored.
