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. 2021 Sep 3;13(17):2986.
doi: 10.3390/polym13172986.

Mechanical Properties of Flexible TPU-Based 3D Printed Lattice Structures: Role of Lattice Cut Direction and Architecture

Victor Beloshenko  1 , Yan Beygelzimer  1 , Vyacheslav Chishko  1 , Bogdan Savchenko  2 , Nadiya Sova  2 , Dmytro Verbylo  3 , Andrei Voznyak  4 , Iurii Vozniak  5
Affiliations

Mechanical Properties of Flexible TPU-Based 3D Printed Lattice Structures: Role of Lattice Cut Direction and Architecture

Victor Beloshenko et al. Polymers (Basel). .

Abstract

This study addresses the mechanical behavior of lattice materials based on flexible thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) with honeycomb and gyroid architecture fabricated by 3D printing. Tensile, compression, and three-point bending tests were chosen as mechanical testing methods. The honeycomb architecture was found to provide higher values of rigidity (by 30%), strength (by 25%), plasticity (by 18%), and energy absorption (by 42%) of the flexible TPU lattice compared to the gyroid architecture. The strain recovery is better in the case of gyroid architecture (residual strain of 46% vs. 31%). TPUs with honeycomb architecture are characterized by anisotropy of mechanical properties in tensile and three-point bending tests. The obtained results are explained by the peculiarities of the lattice structure at meso- and macroscopic level and by the role of the pore space.

Keywords: 3D printing; flexible TPU; internal architecture; lattice material; mechanical properties.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
The peculiarities of the multiscale structure of flexible TPU lattice materials with honeycomb and gyroid architecture as well as the arrangement of A- and B-type test specimens.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Isometric views of individual cells of honeycomb (a,b) and gyroid (c,d) architectures.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Representative stress–strain curves of lattice flexible TPU under tension. (a) honeycomb, (b) gyroid architecture.
Figure 4
Figure 4
DMA curves for lattice flexible TPU with honeycomb architecture. (a)–E’(T), (b)–E’’(T), (c)–tgδ(T) dependencies.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Representative stress–strain curves of lattice flexible TPU under compression. (a)–honeycomb, (b)–gyroid architecture. The inset shows the enlarged initial part of the same curves.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Energy absorption (a) and specific energy absorption (b) of the lattice flexible TPU structures.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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