Vapour treatment to improve surface quality of fused deposition modeling products

采用丙烯腈-丁二烯-苯乙烯(ABS)、聚乳酸(PLA)等材料的熔融沉积成型技术因其较低的材料成本而成为添加剂制造中的一种流行技术。然而，由于阶梯效应和材料局部凝固过程中不均匀的相变导致的表面质量较差，因此有必要进行制造后精加工操作，以改善表面粗糙度和美观外观。Cimetrix Solutions Inc.利用最近开发的FDM后处理技术，使用Stratasys的系统Finish Touch Smooting Station(FTSS)对FDM产品的表面光洁度进行处理。这项技术的基础是对FDM品进行蒸汽处理，以改善其表面质量和完整性。Finish Touch Smoking Station可在最小程度上减少操作员的干预，将FDM零件抛光到接近注塑成型的质量。这一自动精加工系统扩展了3D打印定制部件的可能性，并可与包括ABSI、ABS-M30、ABS-M30i、ABSplus和ASA在内的一系列FDM热塑性塑料一起使用。本研究的目的是在实验上建立一个模型，描述在FTS过程中，以二甲基酮(丙酮)为基础的水蒸气对通过添加制造工艺制造的ABS产品的影响。该模型对于优化蒸汽处理工艺是必要的。该项目的目标是找到最佳的精加工参数集，以获得尽可能好的表面粗糙度，而不会导致偏离产品的几何和尺寸公差规格。制造商和客户非常希望能够预测蒸汽处理后最终产品的表面完整性。该项目的结果将用于优化 此外，它还可以提供蒸气处理过程的参数，并预测最终产品的质量。

Fused Deposition Modelling (FDM) using material such as Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene (ABS), Polylactic Acid (PLA) etc.; has emerged as a popular technique in Additive Manufacturing because of its lower material cost. However, poor surface quality due the staircase effect and the non-homogeneous phase changes during localized solidification of the material has driven the necessity of after fabrication finishing operations with a goal of improving surface roughness and aesthetic appearance. Cimetrix Solutions Inc. utilizes a recently developed FDM post-processing technology for the surface finish of the FDM products using the Stratasys's System, Finishing Touch Smoothing Station (FTSS). This technology is based on the vapour treatment of the FDM Products to improve their surface quality and integrity. The Finishing Touch Smoothing Station polishes FDM parts to near injection-moulded quality with minimal operator intervention. This automated finishing system expands possibilities for 3D printed custom parts and works with a range of FDM thermoplastics including ABSi, ABS-M30, ABS-M30i, ABSplus and ASA. The objective of this research is to experimentally develop a model representing the effect of Dimethylketone (Acetone)-based vapour on ABS products fabricated by additive manufacturing process during FTS. This model is necessary to optimize the vapour treatment process. The objective of the project is to find the optimum set of the finishing parameters to achieve the best possible surface roughness without causing deviation from the geometric and dimensional tolerance specifications of the product. It is highly desired by the manufacturer and the customers to predict the surface integrity of the final product after the vapour treatment. The results of this project will be used to optimize the parameters of the vapour treatment process and also to predict the quality of the final product.