Effect of Printing Parameters on Mechanical Performance of Material-Extrusion 3D-Printed PEEK Specimens at the Point-of-Care

Abstract

Additive manufacturing (AM) of polyetheretherketone (PEEK) biomaterials using the material-extrusion (MEX) method has been studied for years. Because of the challenging manufacturing process, precisely controlling printing parameters is crucial. This study aimed to investigate the effects of printing parameters such as orientation and position of printing on mechanical properties. Thus, 34 samples were printed using PEEK filament and the MEX process. Samples were divided into two main groups (A,B) according to their printing orientations (A: groups 1–3) and positions on the build plate (B: groups 4–8). Mechanical tensile tests were performed to evaluate the effects of different printing orientations and positions on mechanical properties. The means of the tensile modulus in samples 3D-printed in XY (group 1), XZ (group 2), and ZX (group 3) orientations were not significantly different (p-value = 0.063). Groups 1 and 2 had smaller distributions than group 3 in the means of tensile strength. The t-test showed that the overall means of the measurements in groups 4–8 did not differ significantly (p-value = 0.315). The tensile tests indicated that printing in vertical and horizontal orientations had no significant influence on mechanical properties. There were no significant differences in mechanical strength between top/bottom printed samples in five different lateral positions. Reliability of printing with good mechanical properties could be a step forward to manufacturing patient-specific implants.

Multiscale Mechanical Characterization of Polyether-2-ketone (PEKK) for Biomedical Application

“…Considering the mechanical properties of the massive material, PEKK appears to be closer to bone; nonetheless, it should be considered that bone substitutes should be produced as porous materials to promote osteointegration [ 52 ]. Furthermore, other authors analyzing similar specimens, with the same printing orientation but using 3D-printed PEEK found an elastic modulus equal to 1.64 GPa at the same raster angle (±45°) [ 56 ]. It is therefore possible to conclude that PEKK is stiffer than PEEK.…”

“…Thus, PEKK material could be more suitable also from the point of view of the elastic modulus unless a different raster angle is chosen. It should be considered that when using PEEK, moving from a raster angle of ±45° to 0° or 90°, the elastic modulus can vary from 1.64 GPa [ 56 ] to 3.79 GPa [ 57 ], respectively.…”

“…The tensile strength can be improved further by refining the 3D-printing technology. Referring to PEEK, in some studies, very high tensile strength values were reported, such as 89 MPa [ 56 ] or 85 MPa [ 59 ]. These authors employed very refined 3D-printing technologies: every spool was dried for 8 h before printing at 80 °C, and the chamber, build plate, and nozzle were preheated to 200 °C, 250 °C, and 450 °C, respectively.…”

Ensembled Surrogate Assisted Material Extrusion Based 3D Printing Process Parameter Optimization for Enhanced Mechanical Properties of PEEK

“…(2023) studied to find out the optimal parameter settings that lead to improved mechanical properties, taking into consideration factors such as print resolution and print time. They also discussed the effect of printing parameters on the microstructure and surface quality of the printed specimens [32]. Further, Marianna et al (2023) studied that the adding nanofillers to the PEEK matrix enhances the mechanical properties of 3D printed nanocomposites, improving stiffness, strength, and toughness, also they found in agreement between analytical models and experimental results that suggests the model's efficacy in predicting the mechanical behaviour of the nanocomposites [33].…”

Advances in the Manufacturing Process of Space Maintainers in Pediatric Dentistry: A Systematic Review from Traditional Methods to 3D-Printing

“…PEEK, a semi-crystalline polymer, exhibits favorable characteristics, including biocompatibility, mechanical strength, durability, lightweight, dimensional stability, and low affinity for plaque accumulation. These properties make PEEK a promising alternative material for manufacturing space maintainers [33,[69][70][71][72]. Furthermore, a study conducted in 2020 demonstrated the high suitability of removable PEEK space maintainers for clinical applications.…”