Bending behavior of 3D-printed sandwich panels: a finite element comparison of PLA and ABS

Abstract

This study investigates the flexural behavior of 3D-printed sandwich panels manufactured from polylactic acid (PLA) and acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) using finite element analysis. Sandwich specimens were designed and fabricated via fused deposition modelling and numerically analyzed using finite element method under three-point bending with mid-span loads of 40 N, 60 N, and 100 N. The simulations reveal a stable and predominantly linear elastic response for both materials across all load levels. Peak von Mises stresses were similar for PLA and ABS and increased almost linearly with load, reaching approximately 7.6 MPa, 11.3 MPa, and 18.9 MPa, respectively, indicating that stress distribution is mainly governed by geometry and loading conditions. In contrast, the strain response was strongly material-dependent, with PLA exhibiting lower elastic strain due to its higher flexural stiffness, while ABS accommodated larger elastic deformations