A Taguchi-Based and Data-Driven Assessment of Surface Roughness and Wettability in FDM-Printed Polymers

Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) enables rapid, flexible production of polymer-based parts; however, because of additive manufacturing’s nature, it creates distinct microscale surface structures. These micro-scale surface morphologies directly affect the functional properties of the parts, such as surface roughness and wettability. In this study, the surface roughness and contact angle behavior of PLA, PETG, and ABS samples printed via FDM were investigated by varying layer thickness, print orientation, and infill density. The experimental design was created using a Taguchi L16 orthogonal array. Surface roughness was determined by optical profilometry, and wettability was measured by static contact angle tests. Surface topography was supported by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and three-dimensional surface analyses. The findings revealed that surface roughness is predominantly dependent on layer thickness, whereas wettability is more strongly influenced by printing orientation, which determines the surface’s anisotropy. The developed artificial neural network (ANN) models successfully predicted the trends in surface roughness and contact angle outputs. This study reveals the effect of micro-scale surface structures formed in the FDM process on functional surface behavior, offering a fundamental framework for developing designable surfaces for micromechanical, microfluidic, and biomedical applications.