Effect of infill density, printing speed and layer thickness on mechanical properties of pineapple leaf fibre-reinforced PLA in FDM 3D printing

Muhammad, Noryani and Mohamad, Nurul Nadia and Mohammad Taha, Mastura and Wahjudi, Arif (2026) Effect of infill density, printing speed and layer thickness on mechanical properties of pineapple leaf fibre-reinforced PLA in FDM 3D printing. Jurnal Kejuruteraan, 38 (1). pp. 115-125. ISSN 0128-0198

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Abstract

The integrated of bio-based and sustainable composite materials had advanced the additive manufacturing (AM) industry, particularly for fused deposition modelling (FDM). Natural fibre-reinforced composites are gaining prominence due to their eco-friendly properties and compatibility with thermoplastics. This study investigates the influence of infill density and layer thickness on the mechanical properties of a novel pineapple leaf fibre (PALF)- reinforced poly-lactic acid (PLA) composite filament used for 3D printing. The composite filament was fabricated through a structured process involving fibre crushing, sieving, mixing with PLA matrix and extrusion. To study the effects of infill density and layer thickness, a series of tensile and flexural test specimens were fabricated in accordance with ASTM D638 and D790 standards, respectively. A design of experiments (DoE) approach, specifically the Taguchi method, was employed to systematically evaluate the influence of layer thickness (0.1 mm, 0.2 mm, 0.3 mm), printing speed (25 mm/s, 50 mm/s, 100 mm/s) and infill density (25%, 50%, 100%), on the mechanical performance. The results revealed a significant correlation between the chosen FDM parameters and the mechanical properties of the PALF/PLA composite. Higher infill density generally contributed to improved tensile and flexural strength due to increased internal material support and reduced void formation. Conversely, lower infill densities, while reducing material consumption and printing time, exhibited reduced mechanical strength. Layer thickness also demonstrated the least influence on the mechanical properties. However, increased layer thickness reduced build time and material overlap. The interaction between infill density and tensile performance is also confirmed in this study with the score of r꞊0.9799 and r꞊0.9806. Negative effect between the printing speed and all mechanical properties with the range values between r꞊-0.0569 and r꞊-0.3608. The study concludes that optimizing these parameters is essential to balance mechanical strength, material efficiency, and printing time. This research contributes to the growing body of knowledge on sustainable 3D printing materials and provides practical insights for optimizing process parameters when using natural fibre composites. It highlights the potential of pineapple leaf fibre as a valuable reinforcement in biodegradable thermoplastics, promoting a circular economy and sustainable manufacturing practices.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Correlation analysis, Pineapple leaf fibre, Poly-lactic polymer, Taguchi method, Tensile testing, Flexural testing
Divisions:	Faculty Of Mechanical Technology And Engineering
Depositing User:	Sabariah Ismail
Date Deposited:	17 Mar 2026 06:14
Last Modified:	17 Mar 2026 06:14
URI:	http://eprints.utem.edu.my/id/eprint/29617
Statistic Details:	View Download Statistic

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