Thesis
FATIGUE ANALYSIS OF ADDITIVE MANUFACTURED HEMP-FIBER FILAMENT
Washington State University
Master of Science (MS), Washington State University
01/2021
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.7273/000003148
Handle:
https://hdl.handle.net/2376/125242
Abstract
In recent years, additive manufacturing in the form of three-dimensional (3D) printing has emerged as a feasible method of production to create fully customizable and functioning parts with inexpensive materials. During the early stages of additive manufacturing, parts that were produced often provided little to no actual use or functionality. However, with growing advancements in technology and materials, engineers have been able to additively manufacture useful parts and tools with 3D printers. One of the most common materials used as filament to print with is Polylactic Acid (PLA). PLA is an inexpensive material and very easy to manage, making it ideal for 3D printing.As with any form of manufacturing, there are drawbacks and negative environmental implications. PLA is an acid-based material, and while it is derived from corn, there is a potential for it to be harmful to the earth and has been known to take close to one thousand years to fully bio-degrade. However, a more natural alternative that has been around for centuries but has been vastly underutilized in the additive manufacturing industry is hemp-fiber. Hemp-fiber as an alternative for pure PLA, is a completely natural fiber which comes from the cannabis sativa plant species. Hemp fiber has exceptional mechanical properties and is 100% recyclable and biodegradable.
In this project, the fatigue analysis of pure Polylactic Acid (PLA) and hemp-fiber infused PLA was studied and compared by additively manufacturing standardized test specimen made with a 3D printer. The mechanical properties and characteristics of the specimen printed from the various filaments were determined by mechanically testing the specimen (three-point bend test and rotational fatigue life test). The results from the fatigue testing of pure PLA, 3 wt%, 7.5 wt% and 10 wt% hemp-fiber infused PLA were observed and compared to determine if the more natural and environmentally friendly alternative provided better strength properties to that of pure PLA. The results show that increasing the wt% content of a hemp-fiber infused PLA specimen at a certain point does in fact increase the ultimate bending stress as well as the overall fatigue life of a purely PLA specimen.
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Details
- Title
- FATIGUE ANALYSIS OF ADDITIVE MANUFACTURED HEMP-FIBER FILAMENT
- Creators
- Matthew Hanson
- Contributors
- Joseph Iannelli (Advisor)Hanfried Hesselbarth (Committee Member)Ralf Pfrommer (Committee Member)Che-Hao Yang (Committee Member)
- Awarding Institution
- Washington State University
- Academic Unit
- Mechanical and Materials Engineering, School of
- Theses and Dissertations
- Master of Science (MS), Washington State University
- Publisher
- Washington State University
- Number of pages
- 85
- Identifiers
- 99900652003001842
- Language
- English
- Resource Type
- Thesis