Optimization of Fatigue Performance of FDM ABS and Nylon Printed Parts

Abstract

This research work aims to proceed with the optimization of Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) printing parameters for acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) and polyamide (Nylon) to improve fatigue resistance. For that purpose, the methodology of the paper involves two main approaches: experimental study and finite element analysis. The experimental part of the paper used the Taguchi method to find the effects of printing internal geometry, printing speed, and nozzle diameter on the fatigue life of ABS and Nylon plastic materials. ANCOVA multiple linear regression and sensitivity analysis was used to investigate the effects of printing parameters on the fatigue life of materials. The analysis of the results revealed: Nylon performed better than ABS, but had a higher slope; the ‘tri-hexagon’ structure resulted in the highest fatigue life, but the effect was statistically significant only for ABS material; the fatigue life of both materials increased with decreasing the nozzle diameter; the printing speed had no statistically significant influence neither on ABS nor Nylon. The experimental results then were validated by numerical simulations and the difference between the values was within ±14% depending on the experiment. Such differences might occur due to numerical and experimental errors.