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Compared to the common selective laser sintering (SLS) manufacturing method, fused deposition modeling (FDM) seems to be an economical and efficient three-dimensional (3D) printing method for high temperature polymer materials in medical applications. In this work, a customized FDM system was developed for polyether-ether-ketone (PEEK) materials pr...
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Citations
... A minimal set of combinations of parameters and levels for each experiment was found using orthogonal arrays. This approach is helpful for PEEK 3D printing, where the cost of producing prototypes is high due to expensive materials [32]. The present study investigated four processing parameters at three levels, as depicted in Table 1. ...
A polyetheretherketone (PEEK) cranial implant is one of the most well-known polymeric implants used in cranioplasty. However, most off-the-shelf PEEK cranial implants are developed by molding and then sized into the patient's defect anatomy by machining, which is time-consuming and capital-intensive. On the contrary, 3D printing, specifically material extrusion, can develop patient-specific cranial implants that precisely fit the defect anatomy, ensuring stable fixation and restoring esthetic cranial symmetry. However, 3D printing high-quality, mechanically robust PEEK implants are challenging due to the high thermal processing conditions required for PEEK printing, its high melt viscosity, and its susceptibility to incomplete crystallization. If appropriately attuned, an optimized set of 3D printing conditions can yield high-quality patient-specific PEEK cranial implants with clinically relevant mechanical properties. Hence, in this study, we comprehensively analyzed the effect of essential 3D printing conditions on cranial implants' material and mechanical properties. Specifically, we varied critical 3D printing material extrusion parameters, such as build orientation, nozzle, bedplate, chamber temperature, and print speed, and analyzed their effect on the implants' impact strength. We also used microscopy and Finite Element Analysis to understand the implants' fracture patterns with the impact indentor's impact. Based on our research, we determined an optimized set of 3D printing conditions to yield cranial implants with appropriate impact strength. Our results revealed that specimens printed at 0° build orientation, i.e., parallel to the bedplate, with optimum printing parameters, such as nozzle, bedplate, chamber temperature, and print speed, sustained a peak force of 2034 N. We envision that this study will help implant manufacturers utilize high-temperature material extrusion 3D printing to develop patient-specific PEEK cranial implants with clinically viable mechanical properties.
... Recently, Cuan-Urquizo and colleagues collated a topical review of the mechanical properties of FFF printed materials and structures, compiling the ongoing experimental, computational, and theoretical approaches reported in the open literature (Cuan-Urquizo et al. 2019). In the review by Cuan-Urquizo et al., they emphasized the structureproperty relationship and the mechanical characterization of FFF structures and materials (Cuan-Urquizo et al. 2019), summarizing the tensile and compressive performance of ABS (acrylonitrile butadiene styrene) (Uddin et al. 2017;Ahn et al. 2002;Rodríguez et al. 2001;Huynh et al. 2020;Sood et al. 2012;Onwubolu and Rayegani 2014), Ultem 9085 (polyetherimide) (Zaldivar et al. 2017), PLA (polylactic acid) (Wittbrodt and Pearce 2015;Laureto and Pearce 2018), PEEK (polyether ether ketone) (Deng et al. 2018;Gómez-García et al. 2023), and polycarbonate (Shojib Hossain et al. 2013;Reich et al. 2019;Shojib Hossain et al. 2014;Vidakis et al. 2022). Notably, the flexural, fracture, fatigue, and cyclic loading performances of various FFF printed materials have also attracted significant research attention (Adibeig et al. 2023;Svetlana et al. 2021;Patterson et al. 2021). ...
The recent availability of a wide range of additively manufactured materials has facilitated the translation from prototype-limited to application-ready 3D printed components. As such, additively manufactured materials deployed in dynamic environments require extensive characterization to elucidate and optimize performance. This research evaluates the dynamic response of fused filament fabrication and vat photopolymerization printed polymers as a function of temperature. Dynamic mechanical analysis is used to extract the viscoelastic properties of several generations of samples exhibiting a range of thermomechanical behavior, highlighting the stiffness and damping characteristics. A modified stiffness–temperature model supports the experimental characterization and provides additional insight concerning the molecular motion occurring over each thermal transition. The insights from the analysis were collated into a case study that leverages their dynamic characteristics in a multimaterial application. The outcomes from this research assimilate a framework that defines the temperature operating range and broadens the design envelope for these additive manufacturing materials.
... The higher molecular weight VESTAKEEP L4000G extruded at 400 • C achieved the highest strain at failure of 8.7%, whereas the lowest value was of 4.1% obtained by the lower molecular weight VESTAKEEP L2000G extruded at 420 • C. Thus, both values are significantly lower compared to the data sheet value which is 25%, tested using injection molded specimens according to ISO 527-2 standard [24][25][26]. In most works published in literature, the strain at break achieved often surpassed the 10% strain mark, with yielding close to 5% strain [5,19,49]. The poor strain during tensile testing, shown in Fig. 5(c) of this study, may be attributed to the lack of a heated chamber. ...
... Finally, tensile testing in the XY plane, demonstrated that this study's smaller and simpler FGF setup achieved a high stress at failure of 72.4 ± 3.7 MPa but poorer tensile modulus than the best available in literature. The use of a 1 mm nozzle and no heated chamber achieved better mechanical properties than a few studies that used 0.4 mm nozzle with a heated chamber [11,49,50] but was nonetheless weak compared to the best reported results. Extruder temperature did not affect mechanical properties whereas molecular weight had a strong relationship, increasing stress at failure by nearly 50% for the higher molecular weight grades. ...
... 29,30 However, the widespread applications of SLS and EBM techniques for GDL fabrication are limited due to issues such as poor penetration and concentrated laser beams, as well as their high cost. 31 Experimental observations indicate that the graphene particles were not adequately embedded into the substrate material along the cross-sectional area, potentially resulting in reduced conductivity. 3 During operation, the metal powder undergoes continuous melting and cooling in a layer-by-layer manner, leading to significant temperature variations. ...
Because of the global energy crisis, many researchers have focused their efforts on fuel cells. The gas diffusion layer (GDL) is a fundamental component of proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cells. The manufacturing procedures for traditional carbon‐based GDLs are sophisticated and energy‐intensive, and have design flexibility constraints, making it difficult to build complicated forms and structures. Additive manufacturing is widely used in a variety of fields, with the fused deposition modeling (FDM) technique being the most popular method. Prior to conducting systematic research on the printed GDLs, it is necessary to investigate the pore parameters with the support of FDM technique. In this research, the initial step involves material selection, FDM printer selection, and modeling. Subsequently, printing analysis and sample characterization are conducted to select an acceptable pore shape. A water drainage test determines the appropriate pore size, followed by additional tests for acceptable porosity range. The square pore shape is determined to be more suitable. A pore side length of 1.0 mm is identified. Furthermore, a suitable pore range of 10.9%–30.3% is identified. Next step, the printed GDLs will undergo further testing to investigate their suitability to be used in PEM fuel cells.
... Rinaldi et al. (2018) demonstrated that printing parameters significantly affected the mechanical strength of 3D printed PEEK parts, with layer height and raster angle negatively impacting strength, while higher printing temperatures improved mechanical properties [14]. Deng et al. (2018) explored optimal printing parameters to enhance PEEK's mechanical properties through FDM, including temperature, speed, and infill density [15]. Arif et al. (2018) studied biocompatible PEEK properties, analysing print orientation, layer thickness, and post-processing effects on mechanical behaviour and surface quality [16]. ...
... Rinaldi et al. (2018) demonstrated that printing parameters significantly affected the mechanical strength of 3D printed PEEK parts, with layer height and raster angle negatively impacting strength, while higher printing temperatures improved mechanical properties [14]. Deng et al. (2018) explored optimal printing parameters to enhance PEEK's mechanical properties through FDM, including temperature, speed, and infill density [15]. Arif et al. (2018) studied biocompatible PEEK properties, analysing print orientation, layer thickness, and post-processing effects on mechanical behaviour and surface quality [16]. ...
... Finally, the regression model proposed in Table 18 can be represented using Eq. (15), which can be used for estimating the impact strength of a 3D printed object printed with PEEK. The proposed predictive model is nonlinear or quadratic in nature and such model is very rare in the published domain. ...
Thermoplastic materials such as Polylactic acid, Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene, Polyethylene terephthalate glycol, Nylon, and Thermoplastic polyurethane are favoured in Fused deposition modeling 3D printing due to their cost-effectiveness and versatile properties. However, with the introduction of high grade thermoplastic material poses compatibility challenges with existing machines and processes, impeding widespread adoption in FDM 3D printing. Incorporating new materials into 3D printing requires adjustments to hardware, software, and settings, leading to potential expenses and time investments. Maintaining quality control and consistency becomes complex as each material demands specific parameters and processing conditions. This variability hinders achieving consistent part quality in 3D printing. Moreover, achieving optimal FDM parameters for high-grade polymers (HGPs) like Polyether ether ketone (PEEK) is a challenge due to the distinctive nature of the property, requiring specialized careful considerations during its optimization process. The considerable thermal gradient and heat distribution during printing can lead to residual stresses and deformations, significantly affecting the quality and, in particular, its impact strength. This article optimizes an industry grade 3D printing PEEK based on the limited number of process parameters, namely, build orientation, in-fill density and chamber temperature. Further, the research tries to derive a predictive model for Impact Strength (IS), which is an important consideration for the 3D printed object. In this article, along with the Impact Strength, Printing Time and Material Usage are also studied to find empirical evidence of association between these output variables or response variables. The result indicates that there is a positive significant correlation or association between them. When utilizing a specific parameter setup, the resulting IS of 86.5 kJ/m², a print time of 89 minutes, and a material usage of 3.26 grams are achieved. Notably, there is a measurable reduction of 9.18% in printing time and a 11.66% decrease in material usage when the print density is set to 100% to optimize impact strength. This optimization approach proves the use of composite desirability is a better approach where multiple objectives need to be achieved. The proposed regression model predicts the impact strength with coefficient of determination value more than 50%.
... Pu et al. [30] have shown similar effects for dynamic mechanical analysis. Deng et al. [31] and Wu et al. [32] described the significant effects of layer thickness and infill. These results not only represent the main requirements for FFF printing of PEEK but can also be largely applied to the overprinting of PEEK laminates. ...
The latest generation of high-temperature 3D printers enables the production of complex structural components from aerospace-grade thermoplastics such as PEEK (polyether ether ketone). However, adding long or continuous fibres is currently limited, and thermal stresses introduced during the process restrict the maximum part dimensions. Combining 3D-printed components with continuous fibre-reinforced components into one hybrid structure has the potential to overcome such limitations. This work aims to determine whether in situ bonding between PEEK laminates and PEEK 3D printing during overprinting is feasible and which process parameters are significantly responsible for the bonding quality. To this end, the bonding is analysed experimentally in two steps. Firstly, the influence of the process parameters on the thermal history and the strength of the bond is investigated. In the second step, a detailed investigation of the most critical parameters is carried out. The investigation showed the feasibility of overprinting with bonding strengths of up to 15 MPa. It was shown that the bonding strength depends primarily on the temperature in the interface. Additionally, the critical parameters to control the process were identified. The process influences that were displayed form the basis for future hybrid component and process designs.
... Furthermore, an optimal set of parameters for PEEK 3D printing was delineated through preceding studies and preliminary experiments (refer to Table S1, Supporting Information). [28] The prototype PEEK implant was designed using 3ds Max software (Autodesk, Canada), after which it was sliced and exported in G.Code format using UltiMaker's Cura 4.4 software (Netherlands). The corresponding data was subsequently imported into the 3D printer for completion of the printing process (as depicted in Figure S1, Supporting Information). ...
The bioinertness, poor antibacterial properties, and weak osseointegration of polyether‐etherketone (PEEK) limit its clinical application as oral implants. In this study, it is developed a personalized and customizable PEEK implant with multifunctional capabilities through sequential 3D printing, surface sulfonation (SPEEK), and modification using a drug‐loaded photocured hydrogel composed of acrylic acid‐acrylamide (AA‐AM) containing simvastatin‐cefepime (SIM‐CFP). The modified implant, referred to as SCHSPEEK, mimics the structure of biomimetic periodontal ligament (PDL) fibers. The chemical composition, surface characteristics, and biological properties of SCHSPEEK both in vitro and in vivo are systematically investigated. The results demonstrate that hydrogel modification not only enhances hydrophilicity and reduces surface roughness and friction coefficient, but also improves biocompatibility, drug release, and antibacterial efficacy. Importantly, SCHSPEEK exhibits a significant improvement in osseointegration capacity in vivo. These findings highlight the potential of SCHSPEEK implants to serve as promising orthopedic and dental implants in clinical settings.
... Print speed and temperature, layer thickness and filling ratio all influence the tensile properties of FFF PEEK [24]. The improvement in tensile properties is attributed to the improved fusion effects and interlayer bonding. ...
... In terms of macro morphology, it can customize the corresponding clinical samples of different defect models. As for microstructure, it is expected to accurately control the internal structure of the material by adjusting the printing parameters [21], and affect the physical and chemical properties of the material based on the change of the internal structure of the material, that is, the crystallinity [22]. ...
Hard tissues, especially teeth and bones, are highly mineralized and the large-scale defect or total loss of them is irreversible. There is still no ideal strategy for the reconstruction of various hard tissue defects that can achieve the balance between biological and mechanical properties. Polyether ether ketone (PEEK) has the potential to substitute for natural hard tissue in defect areas but is limited by its biological inertness. The addition of hydroxyapatite (HA) can significantly improve the osteogenic properties and osteointegration of PEEK materials. But the mechanical properties of HA/PEEK scaffolds are far from satisfaction making scaffolds easy to fracture. We put forward a strategy to balance the mechanical and biological properties of HA/PEEK scaffolds via the regulation of the inner crystallinity and HA mixing ratio and we systematically evaluated the modified HA/PEEK scaffolds through material characterization, in vitro and in vivo experiments. And we found that the 20%HA/PEEK scaffolds with low crystallinity achieved the required strength and elasticity, and exhibited the characteristics of promoting the proliferation, migration and osteogenic differentiation of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMMSCs). The results of the implantation of Beagles’ teeth, mandible and rib showed that the 20%HA/PEEK scaffold with low crystallinity could well withstand the local complex force in the defect area and combine well with natural bone tissue, which made it a candidate for a practical versatile hard tissue engineering scaffold.
... It has been proved that PEEK can be thought of as an alternative for metals due its superior and unique mechanical cum material properties [12,20] and applications [24,25,26]. So a few researchers have done their study, for example, [21,22] examined the mechanical strengths and the thermal management of PEEK with different FDM printing process parameters, which decides upon its interlayer bonding and to affect the level of crystallinity in the 3D printed PEEK structure. ...
In the material extrusion based 3D printing-fused deposition modelling (FDM), each material may require its own unique set of processing parameters and these parameters can be difficult to optimise and control. This can lead to variability in the final product and can make it challenging to produce parts with consistent quality. Indeed, it is difficult to consider specific FDM parameters to obtain optimum mechanical properties mainly in case of high grade polymers (HGPs) e.g. PEEK, PEK, PPS etc. With the high thermal gradient and heat distribution during their printing, possibilities of residual stresses and deformations are unavoidable, which directly affects its quality and mechanical properties. In this article, an ensembled Surrogate Assisted Evolutionary Algorithm (SAEA) based method is used to optimise the process parameters (layer height, print speed, print direction and nozzle temperature) to enhance the mechanical properties, considered as print quality, of PEEK considering print time into account. The solution obtained through the SAEA approach is further compared with the solution computed through Gray Relational Analysis (GRA) Taguchi, which is used as the benchmark method, to establish the superiority of the proposed one. The comparison indicates the SAEA based solution has 28.86% of higher Ultimate stress value, 66.95% of lower percentage of elongation and 7.14% of lower print time in comparison to the benchmark result. It has also been found that print direction has a greater role in deciding the optimum value of mechanical properties for FDM 3d-printed PEEK material.
