The wide -scale use of low -cost fused filament fabrication (FFF) machines and their adoption for retail or manufacturing applications mean that there is a need to consider quality assurance in the manufacture of parts from low -cost machines. This article presents a low -cost method for evaluating the interlayer bond strength of FFF -made parts. Various tensile, flexural, and impact test specimens were designed, fabricated, and tested based on ISO standard methods, and on a new test jig to evaluate the strength of FFF -made parts. Tests conducted on the test jig were validated against those conducted on conventional testing machines. Analysis of variance was used to investigate the significance of processing parameters (layer thickness, fill density, and speed of deposition) on the mechanical properties. All the test types were observed to be sensitive to changes in processing conditions that affect the interlayer bond strength and hence the quality of the fabricated parts. Based on experimental results, the novel low -cost test jig does give an appropriate method for evaluating interlayer bond strength as part of routine quality testing.
Purpose
The purpose of this research is to determine what tests can be most useful in quality assurance and control when using fused filament fabrication (FFF) 3D printing machines. The quality of the bond between layers is critical for the structural integrity of the fused filament fabricated parts.
Design/methodology/approach
Therefore, to determine the influence of process parameters on the quality of parts’ tensile, flexural, notched and un-notched impact, test specimens were fabricated in polylactic acid (PLA) using FFF with different layer thicknesses, fill densities, orientation and print speeds. The mechanical properties were then assessed along with the accuracy and mass of the samples.
Findings
It is concluded that a notched impact test gives a measure of interlayer bond strength which can be used across build styles to track machine performance, and that this, together with the mass and dimensions of the impact-test specimens, offers an appropriate set of tests capable of tracking the mechanical properties of parts produced using the FFF technique.
Originality/value
Therefore, this research finding will be of value in benchmarking FFF machines for quality parts fabrications.
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