Investigation of Bond Formation in FDM Process

FDM process fabricates prototypes by extruding a semi-molten filament through a heated nozzle onto a platform. The semi-molten material solidifies with the neighboring material diffusely after deposition. The bonding quality among ABS filaments in FDM2000 process determines the integrity and mechanical property of resultant prototypes. This paper describes heat transfer analysis of the FDM process. Sintering experiments were carried out to evaluate qualitatively the dynamics of bond formation between polymer filaments. Quantitative predictions of the degree of bonding achieved during the filament deposition process were made, based on experimental data used in conjunction with heat transfer and sintering models.