Experimental Optimization of Fused Deposition Modelling Processing Parameters: A Design-for-Manufacturing Approach

The Additive Manufacturing (AM) technology initially was developed as a rapid prototyping tool for visualization and validation of designs. The recent development of AM technologies, such as Fused Deposition Modelling (FDM), is driving it from rapid prototyping to rapid manufacturing. However, building end-user functional parts using FDM proved to be a challenging task. The difficulty arises from the large number of processing parameters that affect the final part design such as: building direction, extrusion temperature, layer height, infill pattern and more. The processing parameters of FDM influence the quality of the parts and their functionality. In addition, a more systemic understanding is required to elaborate on the impact of the FDM processing parameters on the final part's mechanical properties, dimensional accuracy and building time. The presented paper provides an experimental study to investigate the independent effect of each processing parameter on the mechanical properties and dimensional accuracy repeatability of FDM parts. A total of 18 test specimen samples were printed using varying processing parameters. In order to investigate the repeatability and resulted tolerances, the dimensions of these specimens were measured and compared with a 3D CAD model. The presented work utilizes a tensile test per ASTM D638 standards to obtain the mechanical properties of each fabricated sample. In addition, the work provides a Finite Element Analysis (FEA) model for AM parts. The work suggested to simulate their behavior under mechanical loads for future investigation on the coupled effects of processing parameters.