Mechanical analysis and additive manufacturing of 3D-printed lattice materials for bone scaffolds

Abstract

In this study, we have explored the potential application of three-dimensional (3D) lattice-structured materials in the bone scaffold implants by investigating the mechanical strength and porosity of various strut-based lattice designs. The aim is to propose a scaffold design that is strong enough to support the surrounding bone structure. Furthermore, the design should be porous enough to provide effective permeability that allows the integration of bone cells. Therefore, four different lattice-structured material samples with equal dimension of 50 mm in length, width, and height comprising of twenty-five lattice unit cells are designed and fabricated by Fused Filament Fabrication (FFF) 3D printing technique using polylactic acid (PLA) material. The samples have been investigated under compression loads by means of the universal test machine and then the strength of each lattice is measured. Furthermore, the porosity of each design is calculated to complete the investigation on the balance between the mechanical strength and porosity. Finally, the chosen lattice structured material from the investigation steps is prototyped into the imaginary damaged femur bone and fabricated with additive manufacturing to demonstrate the closed loop of design and implementation process.