Purpose

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the capability and performance of analytical models to predict the structural mechanical behaviour of parts fabricated by fused deposition modelling (FDM).

Design/methodology/approach

A total of eight existing and newly proposed analytical models, tailored to satisfy the structural behaviour of FDM parts, are evaluated in terms of their capability to predict the ultimate tensile stress (UTS) and the elastic modulus (E) of parts made of polylactic acid (PLA) by the FDM process. This evaluation is made by comparing the structural properties predicted by these models with the experimental results obtained from tensile tests on FDM specimens fabricated with variable infill percentage, perimeter layers and build orientation.

Findings

Some analytical models are able to predict with high accuracy (prediction errors smaller than 5%) the structural behaviour of FDM and categories of similar additive manufactured parts. The most accurate model is Gibson’s and Ashby, followed by the efficiency model and the two new proposed exponential and variant Duckworth models.

Research limitations/implications

The study has been limited to uniaxial loading conditions along three different build orientations.

Practical implications

The structural properties of FDM parts can be predicted by analytical models based on the process parameters and material properties. Product engineers can use these models during the design for the additive manufacturing process.

Originality/value

Existing methods to estimate the structural properties of FDM parts are based on experimental tests; however, such methods are time-consuming and costly. In this work, the use of analytical models to predict the structural properties of FDM parts is proposed and evaluated.

中文翻译：

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用于估计熔融沉积建模组件结构行为的分析模型

目的

本研究的目的是评估分析模型的能力和性能，以预测通过熔融沉积建模 (FDM) 制造的零件的结构力学行为。

设计/方法/方法

总共有八个现有和新提出的分析模型，为满足 FDM 零件的结构行为而定制，根据它们预测聚乳酸制成的零件的极限拉伸应力 (UTS) 和弹性模量 (E) 的能力进行评估(PLA) 通过 FDM 工艺。该评估是通过将这些模型预测的结构特性与从 FDM 试样拉伸试验中获得的实验结果进行比较来进行的，这些试样采用可变填充百分比、周边层和构建方向制造。

发现

一些分析模型能够以高精度（预测误差小于 5%）预测 FDM 的结构行为和类似增材制造零件的类别。最准确的模型是 Gibson 和 Ashby，其次是效率模型和两个新提出的指数和变体 Duckworth 模型。

研究限制/影响

该研究仅限于沿三个不同构建方向的单轴加载条件。

实际影响

FDM 零件的结构特性可以通过基于工艺参数和材料特性的分析模型进行预测。产品工程师可以在增材制造过程的设计过程中使用这些模型。

原创性/价值

现有的估计 FDM 零件结构特性的方法是基于实验测试；然而，这种方法既费时又费钱。在这项工作中，提出并评估了使用分析模型来预测 FDM 零件的结构特性。