Title: Analysis of part quality produced by a fused deposition modelling machine: a pragmatic study

Authors: Ayanna-Rene De Noon; Fahraz Ali; Boppana V. Chowdary

Addresses: Department of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, The University of the West Indies, St Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago ' Department of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, The University of the West Indies, St Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago ' Department of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, The University of the West Indies, St Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago

Abstract: Fused Deposition Modelling (FDM) is a rapid prototyping technology in which a spool of thermoplastic filament is extruded through a heated nozzle tip and deposited in layers built upon each other to form a final part. This research work demonstrates a method for optimisation of process parameters with the intention of fabricating high-quality surface finish and dimensionally accurate parts. The process parameters, including layer thickness, air gap, raster width, part orientation and deviational tolerance, are optimised through statistical analysis. The degree of influence of each parameter is determined using Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) for the responses of surface roughness and dimensional accuracy. The full factorial experimental design was employed and the results confirmed legitimacy of this approach for optimising FDM parameters. This study also established that deviation tolerance has a significant impact on the final part just as much as the more commonly known parameters such as layer thickness and raster width.

Keywords: fused deposition modelling; FDM; rapid prototyping; additive manufacturing; ANOVA; process parameters; parameter optimisation; surface quality; surface finish; dimensionally accuracy; layer thickness; air gap; raster width; part orientation; deviational tolerance; statistical analysis; analysis of variance; ANOVA; surface roughness; experimental design.

DOI: 10.1504/IJRAPIDM.2015.074805

International Journal of Rapid Manufacturing, 2015 Vol.5 No.3/4, pp.234 - 254

Received: 16 Sep 2015
Accepted: 12 Nov 2015
Published online: 19 Feb 2016 *

Full-text access for editors Full-text access for subscribers Purchase this article Comment on this article