Post-processing of FDM parts to improve surface and thermal properties

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to develop a novel post-processing technique of fused deposition modeling (FDM) parts to improve surface roughness and reduce heat absorption and for high-temperature application in thermoforming process. Design/methodology/approachThe current technique consists of chemical treatment, drying and aluminum coating. First, surface morphology was investigated using FDM specimens with a flat surface. The heat absorption characteristic was also analyzed by Taguchi-based design of experiment and modified lump-capacity model. In addition, dimensional accuracy and uniformity were investigated under high-temperature conditions, which were similar to a typical thermoforming process, with specimens having concave and convex grooves. FindingsIt was verified that the proposed post-processing technique could efficiently improve surface quality of FDM parts with the arithmetic average surface roughness of 2.06 µm. In addition, the coated aluminum layer was found to reflect the heat radiation, resulting into a sufficient reduction of heat absorption. From the investigation of dimensional accuracy and uniformity, it was found that the current technique produced maximum change of 0.11 mm and uniform thickness of an aluminum layer within 0.07 mm. Originality/valueThe present study establishes a novel post-processing technique, enabling to treat the surface of FDM parts for high-temperature applications. It provides a simple way of using typical FDM parts for a thermoforming process as the mold cores. Furthermore, it can be used in other rapid tooling technologies, consequently widening the application areas of FDM.

Characterization of the Mechanical Properties of FFF Structures and Materials: A Review on the Experimental, Computational and Theoretical Approaches

“…Other approaches for enhancing the mechanical properties of printed components include reinforcing polymers with fillers such as montmorillonite [57], with discontinuous fibers [9,10] and with continuous fibers [58,59,60,61]. Additionally, some researchers have used post-processing techniques to enhance surface quality, strength and tightness [62,63]. Nevertheless, the characterization of parts printed with reinforced polymers and post-processing are beyond the scope of this review paper.…”

A Comparative Analysis of Chemical, Thermal, and Mechanical Post-Process of Fused Filament Fabricated Polyetherimide Parts for Surface Quality Enhancement

“…Some works combine vapor smoothing with other finishing techniques. For instance, Nguyen et al [ 23 ] carried out a design-of-experiments-based investigation on the treatment of ABS parts combining an acetone-based chemical treatment, drying, and aluminum coating, observing a decrease in surface roughness and heat absorption of radiative heating. Maciag et al [ 24 ] performed a study on the influence of acetone smoothing and subsequent galvanic copper plating over the surface parameters of ABS prints.…”

Improving surface roughness of polylactic acid (PLA) products manufactured by 3D printing using a novel slurry impact technique

“…Abrasive milling was combined with FDM in Tomal et al (2018) to enhance surface roughness. Chemical treatment and coating were used in Nguyen and Lee (2018) to improve surface roughness. In the review paper (Kumbhar and Mulay, 2018), it was concluded that laser micro machining can be adopted to improve roughness.…”