Development of a Laboratory Module in 3D Printing

The goal of the study was to develop a laboratory module in the mechanical and thermal characterizations of the 3D printed specimens by the ASTM standard test-methods in order to improve an undergraduate materials laboratory course utilizing Extrusion Material (EM) technique. A small-scale-low-cost EM printer was used as a default-test-printing machine to produce the test-specimens for the ASTM standards of D6110 (Charpy impact test), D638 (tensile test), and D648 (heat deflection test), respectively; these test specimens were printed using a filament material (Polylatic acid (PLA)) and were evaluated according to the ASTM standards designated. The results of the mechanical and thermal tests for the 3D printed specimens were contrasted to the published data for comparison. In addition, the study presented the survey results of intended learning outcomes (ILOs) in the laboratory course designed by POGIL (Process-Oriented Guided Inquiry Learning) approach for active learning in undergraduate materials education.