Mechanical Performance and Fracture Morphology of Fused Deposition Modeling-Printed Porous PLA Gyroid Architectures

Porous polymeric architecture fabricated via Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) offers significant potential for lightweight engineering components and biomedical scaffolds due to their controllable internal topologies. Triply periodic minimal surface (TPMS) gyroid structures have emerged as a promising design strategy for lightweight components and biomedical scaffolds due to their continuous porous architecture, high surface-to-volume ratio, and efficient load distribution characteristics. However, the combined influence of Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) process parameters on the mechanical behavior and failure mechanisms of gyroid-based structures remains insufficiently understood. Therefore, this study investigates the effects of infill density (30%, 50%, and 70%) and layer thickness (0.3, 0.4, and 0.5 mm) on the mechanical performance of polylactic acid (PLA) specimens incorporating a TPMS gyroid infill architecture. Specimens were fabricated using a CreatBot D1000 industrial FDM printer and evaluated through tensile and flexural testing according to ASTM D638 and ASTM D790 standards, respectively, with fully solid (100% infill) specimens serving as controls. Fracture morphology and pore characteristics were further analysed using Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FESEM). The results showed that both infill density and layer thickness significantly affected the structural performance of the gyroid specimens. The configuration with 70% infill density and 0.5 mm layer thickness achieved the highest tensile strength (33.24 MPa) and flexural strength (66.87 MPa), retaining approximately 70.4% of the strength of fully solid specimens while reducing material consumption by 30%. FESEM observations revealed predominantly cohesive trans-filament fracture in high-density gyroid structures, indicating improved inter-bead bonding, whereas low-density specimens (30% infill) exhibited stress concentration, interlayer delamination, and filament pull-out. The continuous gyroid architecture promoted uniform stress distribution and enhanced mechanical efficiency, demonstrating its suitability for lightweight load-bearing applications. These findings provide practical guidelines for optimizing FDM processing parameters in the fabrication of high-performance TPMS gyroid structures

Additive manufacturing, Porous material

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