A comparative analysis of mechanical and thermal properties of Injection molded and Additive manufactured Argan nut shell particles reinforced polypropylene.

. The main objective of this study is to compare the mechanical and thermal properties of the injected and 3D printed specimens of polypropylene (PP) and Argan nut shell (ANS) bio-composite. The filament was created through twin screw extrusion. The specimen were FDM (fused deposition modeling) printed and injected. The DSC, TGA, FTIR, tensile testing has been investigated. Tensile testing shows that the injected sample exhibits significant plastic deformation than the printed sample and a higher mechanical properties. The DSC shows that the injection-molded polypropylene sample exhibited a slightly higher melting temperature and crystallinity index compared to the 3D-printed sample. The TGA shows that the injected sample thermal degradation temperature is slightly higher than the printed sample. FTIR indicates that Both spectra are dominated by aliphatic hydrocarbon bands. Moreover, SEM observations confirm clear microstructural differences between the two processing methods. The 3D printed PP shows visible layer lines and interfacial voids. In contrast, the injection-molded PP presents a dense and uniform morphology. Overall, the results indicate that injection molding produces PP/ANS composites with superior mechanical and thermal performance, whereas FDM, despite producing specimens with lower strength, remains a practical manufacturing way when printing conditions are properly optimized.