Repeatability of linear and radial dimension of ABS replicas fabricated by fused deposition modelling and chemical vapor smoothing process: A case study

In this research work, an effort has been made to study the influence of fused deposition modelling (FDM) and chemical vapor smoothing (CVS) process parameters on the selected linear and radial dimension as well as on repeatability of acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) replicas as a case study. The study highlights that orientation of parts on FDM build platform, part density (part interior style) and interaction between these two parameters significantly affect the accuracy of selected dimensions. Shrinkage has been observed in the selected radial dimension of the prototypes, but there is a positive deviation in the linear dimension from the desired value. The CVS process reduces both the dimensions slightly due to reflow of the material. Optimum parameter settings that were different for both linear and radial dimensions have been investigated using Taguchi’s L18 orthogonal array. The IT grades of ABS replicas prepared by this combined process were found to be consistent with the permissible range of tolerance grades as per ISO standard UNI EN 20286-I (1995) and DIN 16901 for plastic materials. Finally, optimum level of process parameters that simultaneously minimizes the deviation in both the dimensions have been found out using response optimization module of Minitab 17 software and the results obtained have been verified by performing the confirmation experiments.