Michele Lanzetta and Emanuel Sachs
The use of bimodal powders has been shown to offer the possibility of dramatically improved surface finish in 3D printing. This work focused on individual lines, the primitive…
Abstract
The use of bimodal powders has been shown to offer the possibility of dramatically improved surface finish in 3D printing. This work focused on individual lines, the primitive building block of 3D printed parts. It was observed that the fine component of bimodal ceramic powders, while uniformly distributed in the original powderbed, was preferentially found at the surface of the printed line, while the interior of the line was denuded of fines. Microscopic examination and approximate quantitative analysis supports the assertion that essentially all the fines have moved to the surface of the line. The mechanism for this rearrangement is not known, but is speculated to be related to the relative difficulty of wetting fine powders. The parameter space in which this phenomenon can be observed was examined in a preliminary manner.
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Kamaljit Singh Boparai, Rupinder Singh and Harwinder Singh
The purpose of this study is to highlight the direct fabrication of rapid tooling (RT) with desired mechanical, tribological and thermal properties using fused deposition…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to highlight the direct fabrication of rapid tooling (RT) with desired mechanical, tribological and thermal properties using fused deposition modelling (FDM) process. Further, the review paper demonstrated development procedure of alternative feedstock filament of low-cost composite material for FDM to extend the range of RT applications.
Design/methodology/approach
The alternative materials for FDM and their processing requirements for fabrication in filament form as reported by various researchers have been summarized. The literature demonstrates the role of various post-processing techniques on surface finish of FDM prints. Further, low-cost materials for feedstock filament have been investigated experimentally to check their adaptability/suitability for commercial FDM setup. The approach was to realize the requirements of FDM (melt flow rate, flexibility, stiffness, glass transition temperature and mechanical strength), necessary for the successful run of an alternative filament. The effect of constituents (additives, plasticizers, surfactants and fillers) in polymeric matrix on mechanical, tribological and thermal properties has been investigated.
Findings
It is possible to develop composite material feedstock as filament for commercial FDM setup without changing its hardware and software. Surface finish of the parts can further be improved by applying various post-processing techniques. Most of the composite parts have high mechanical strength, hardness, thermal stability, wear resistant and better bond formation than standard material parts.
Research limitations/implications
Future research may be focused on improving the surface quality of parts fabricated with composite feedstock, solving issues related to the uniform distribution of filled materials during the fabrication of feedstock filament which in turns further increases mechanical strength, high dimensional stability of composite filament and transferring the technology from laboratory scale to various industrial applications.
Practical implications
Potential applications of direct fabrication with RT includes rapid manufacturing (RM) of metal-filled parts and ceramic-filled parts (which have complex shape and cannot be rapidly made by any other manufacturing techniques) in the field of biomedical and dentistry.
Originality/value
This new manufacturing methodology is based on the proper selection and processing of various materials and additives to form high-performance, low-cost composite material feedstock filament (which fulfil the necessary requirements of FDM process). Finally, newly developed feedstock filament material has both quantitative and qualitative advantage in RT and RM applications as compared to standard material filament.