Shrinkage Of Parts Research Articles

Synthesis and Solvent Free DLP 3D Printing of Degradable Poly(Allyl Glycidyl Ether Succinate).

Digital light processing (DLP) printing forms solid constructs from fluidic resins by photochemically crosslinking polymeric resins with reactive functional groups. DLP is used widely due to its efficient, high-resolution printing, but its use and translational potential has been limited in some applications as state-of-the-art resins experience unpredictable and anisotropic part shrinkage due to the use of solvent needed to reduce resin viscosity and layer dependent crosslinking. Herein, poly(allyl glycidyl ether succinate) (PAGES), a low viscosity, degradable polyester, was synthesized by ring opening copolymerization and used in combination with degradable thiol crosslinkers to afford a solvent free resin that can be utilized in DLP printing. Varying resin formulations of PAGES polymer are shown to decrease part shrinkage from 14 % to 0.3 %. Photochemically printed parts fabricated from PAGES possess tensile moduli between 0.43 and 6.18 MPa and degradation profiles are shown to vary between 12 and 40 days under accelerated conditions based on degree of polymerization and crosslink ratio.

Synthesis and Solvent Free DLP 3D Printing of Degradable Poly(Allyl Glycidyl Ether Succinate)

AbstractDigital light processing (DLP) printing forms solid constructs from fluidic resins by photochemically crosslinking polymeric resins with reactive functional groups. DLP is used widely due to its efficient, high‐resolution printing, but its use and translational potential has been limited in some applications as state‐of‐the‐art resins experience unpredictable and anisotropic part shrinkage due to the use of solvent needed to reduce resin viscosity and layer dependent crosslinking. Herein, poly(allyl glycidyl ether succinate) (PAGES), a low viscosity, degradable polyester, was synthesized by ring opening copolymerization and used in combination with degradable thiol crosslinkers to afford a solvent free resin that can be utilized in DLP printing. Varying resin formulations of PAGES polymer are shown to decrease part shrinkage from 14 % to 0.3 %. Photochemically printed parts fabricated from PAGES possess tensile moduli between 0.43 and 6.18 MPa and degradation profiles are shown to vary between 12 and 40 days under accelerated conditions based on degree of polymerization and crosslink ratio.

Comparison of Hybrid Machine Learning Approaches for Surrogate Modeling Part Shrinkage in Injection Molding.

Machine learning (ML) methods present a valuable opportunity for modeling the non-linear behavior of the injection molding process. They have the potential to predict how various process and material parameters affect the quality of the resulting parts. However, the dynamic nature of the injection molding process and the challenges associated with collecting process data remain significant obstacles for the application of ML methods. To address this, within this study, hybrid approaches are compared that combine process data with additional process knowledge, such as constitutive equations and high-fidelity numerical simulations. The hybrid modeling approaches include feature learning, fine-tuning, delta-modeling, preprocessing, and using physical constraints, as well as combinations of the individual approaches. To train and validate the hybrid models, both the experimental and simulated shrinkage data of an injection-molded part are utilized. While all hybrid approaches outperform the purely data-based model, the fine-tuning approach yields the best result in the simulation setting. The combination of calibrating a physical model (feature learning) and incorporating it implicitly into the training process (physical constraints) outperforms the other approaches in the experimental setting.

The influence of mold design and process parameters on dimensional shrinkage of perfluoroalkoxy alkane injection molding parts

AbstractIn mass production, injection molding plays a vital role in manufacturing various parts with complex settings. As perfluoroalkoxy alkane (PFA) injection‐molded products are widely used in immersion system, dimensional quality needs more attention. However, there is limited research on the dimension defects of PFA injection‐molded products. This study focused on the influence of mold design and process parameters on PFA part shrinkage, using mold flow simulation and orthogonal testing separately. Several gate locations and sizes were simulated to minimize shrinkage in mold design. Displacements varied with gate locations, and shrinkage decreased with larger gate sizes. The Taguchi method analyzed process parameters' impact on shrinkage. The results indicated that the injection rate had the most significant effect on the shrinkage of tube length, while melt temperature, holding pressure, and screw speed affected the shrinkage of tubes' outside diameter. Different flow directions exhibited variance in shrinkage. Using max–min normalization, the two shrinkage values reached 0.00972, whereas the smallest value obtained in the orthogonal experiment was 0.1545 in run 3. Thus, optimizing mold design and process parameters were two effective methods to reduce shrinkage. This study reduced shrinkage and improved the quality of PFA injection molding parts for semiconductor systems.

Effect of heat treatment on mechanical properties and dimensional accuracy of 3D-Printed black carbon fiber HTPLA

This present study investigated how heat treatment affects the mechanical properties of 3D-printed black carbon fiber HTPLA by manipulating two parameters: heating temperature and holding time. The mechanical properties of 3D-printed black carbon fiber HTPLA components are crucial for assessing their structural integrity and performance. The shrinkage and dimensional accuracy of the 3D-printed parts were also explored using a vernier caliper. The microstructure of both heat-treated and non-heat-treated HTPLA black carbon fiber 3D-printed parts was examined using scanning electron microscopy. Samples were prepared, printed, heat-treated, and mechanically tested, and their microstructure was observed and recorded. The results showed that heat treatment improved the material's strength, hardness, and crystallinity, leading to better mechanical properties. However, statistical analysis indicates no clear evidence that the two factors, optimum heating temperature and holding time, affect the mechanical properties of heat-treated printed parts. Nonetheless, further study suggests that these factors might be important in optimizing the heat treatment process.

Physics-based neural network as constitutive law for finite element analysis of sintering

In the sintering of advanced ceramics, a digital twin consisted of a finite element model can predict the final shape and microstructure of a sintered ceramic. However, to minimise uncertainties, it is essential to continually update the mechanical properties in the digital twin using data collected from the manufacturing process. One promising approach for achieving this is through artificial neural networks (ANN). This study introduces a machine learning strategy to update the constitutive behaviour of advanced ceramics in finite element analysis of sintering deformation. A major challenge in implementing machine learning in material processing is the huge amount of data required by the training and validation of an ANN, which are often unavailable or incomplete in a real manufacturing process. This study demonstrates that the data requirement can be reduced by employing a two-step training technique. Firstly, the ANN is trained using a nonlinear constitutive law, which describes a general relationship between the strain rates and stresses. Subsequently, the weights and biases of the ANN are transferred for the retraining using limited experimental data for an actual ceramic. It is shown that such approach can successfully capture the nonlinear constitutive behaviour of fine-grained alumina without demanding for large amount of experimental data. A case study is provided, highlighting the feasibility of implementing the ANN in a commercial finite element package, to replace the constitutive law and predict the shrinkage and distortion of a sintering part. In particular, the sintered dumb-bell shape part, simulated using the retrained ANN, showed grain size and relative density that markedly different from those using the nonlinear constitutive law. It is important to note that the proposed methodology is generic and can be used to create ANNs to replace constitutive laws in finite element analysis in digital twins for a wide range of other engineering processes.

Finite element simulation of pressure and volume shrinkage of the top part of socks using ABAQUS

How to achieve an effective balance between functionality and comfort is a key factor in the design of the top part of socks. In order to make the top part of socks more consistent with the characteristics of pressure distribution at the lower leg while improving pressure comfort, the lower leg and foot of the human body was taken as the research object, and Mimics software was used to establish a three-dimensional model of the lower leg and foot. ABAQUS software was applied to simulate the pressure distribution state of the lower leg at the top part of the socks and the stress trend in each region of the lower leg after wearing experimental socks. In order to further study the compression state of the lower leg section at the top part of the socks after wearing the socks, the section was divided into eight regions according to the angle, and the functional relationship between pressure and displacement was obtained through curve fitting. Meanwhile, the volume shrinkage of the eight regions of the lower leg section after compression was calculated, respectively. Results showed that the curvature radius of the lower leg, the thickness of the soft tissue and the position of the skeleton jointly affected the pressure and displacement values after wearing socks, and the distribution trend of volume shrinkage was different at each region of the lower leg section. The conclusion could provide the theoretical basis for the optimization design of the tightness degree of the top part of socks in different regions, and provide a data reference for the research and development of pressure socks that meet the required pressure comfort.

The effect of powder feedstock and heat treatment on the thermal and mechanical properties of binder jet printed ZrC

Zirconium carbide (ZrC) disks were fabricated using binder jet printing to study the effect of powder feedstock, print parameters, and heat treatment on flowability and final materials properties. A median volumetric particle size smaller than 10 μm was shown to cause the powder to stop flowing during printing. Disks were printed using ZrC with suitable flowability and then heat-treated at temperatures between 1800 °C and 2200 °C for 1 or 5 h. The density, part shrinkage, thermal diffusivity, and fracture strength all increased with increasing temperature and time. The heat-treated disks were then heated to 2200 °C for 5 h and the properties converged for disks of the same particle size, indicating the hottest temperature and longest time of exposure dictates the final properties. Lastly, it was shown that larger particles produce lower density materials with worse thermal diffusivity, most likely because of poor connectivity between particles after heat treatment.

INFLUENCE OF PROCESSING MODES ON ACCURACYAND SHRINKAGE OF THREADED PLASTIC PARTS OF OILFIELD EQUIPMENT

The study of the operating conditions of oil equipment made it possible to identify a set of indicators that most fully characterize the quality of plastic parts. It is known that the quality of parts of products made of various materials is a combination of mechanical, physical and operational indicators of any equipment. It is partially formed during their manufacturing process, depending on their materials and manufacturing method. And plastic parts are very different from metals depending on the area of application. This is due to the technologies for manufacturing structural products and individual parts from them. When manufacturing technologically complex parts from polymer materials, it is possible to achieve the required quality by controlling production modes depending on the grade of materials and the design of the parts being manufactured. Production of a thread of plastic details is rather difficult, than on metals. It is connected with the physical-mechanical processes coming in the course of production of concrete thread details from plastic by method of pressing and casting under pressure. Also mechanics of formation of plastic threads on details of the oil-field equipment on the specific properties differ from the threads received by a machining method on metals. As thread surfaces on plastic details are formed in compression molds depending on materials and the modes: temperatures, pressure and time of production. These regime parameters and guided parameters play a part at a guaranty of physical- mechanical properties of details in the course of production. In this regard, it in this article influences of technological parameters of production on quality of thread details oil-field equipment are considered. At the same time, in a wide range of operating parameters, the achievable boundaries of quality indicators for parts operating in the designs of exploration, drilling and operation equipment in the oil and gas industry are investigated. Mathematical relationships are established between the quality indicators (shrinkage and strength) of parts on the pressing temperature. Keywords: thread plastic details, accuracy, shrinkage, pressing pressure.

Prediction of Part Shrinkage for Injection Molded Crystalline Polymer via Cavity Pressure and Melt Temperature Monitoring

During an injection molding process, different parts of the molded material are subjected to various thermal–mechanical stresses, such as variable pressures, temperatures, and shear stresses. These variations form different pressure–temperature paths on the pressure–volume–temperature diagram. If these paths cannot converge at a specific target volume value during ejection, it often leads to different levels of shrinkage and associated warping, which pose a significant challenge for molders during mold trials and part quality control. The situation is particularly complicated when molding crystalline polymers because the degree of crystallinity depends on the processing conditions and may vary across different locations. In this study, we propose an innovative and practical approach to improving part shrinkage when molding crystalline polymers. For the first time, we utilized melt temperature profile monitoring rather than the previous mold temperature measurement to detect the crystallization process and determine the time taken to complete the crystallization at different melt and mold temperatures. In addition, we used response surface methodology to build a crystallization time prediction model. The feasibility of the prediction model was verified by determining the warpage of parts molded at various cooling times. Based on this model, we varied the packing pressure, packing time, and melt temperatures to determine the correlation with part shrinkage. Through regression analysis, the time-averaged solidification pressure values can accurately control part shrinkage. Two prediction models provide reasonable accuracy and efficiency for part shrinkage control, as demonstrated by subsequent verification experiments.

Multi-Material Additive Manufacturing: Creating IN718-AISI 316L Bimetallic Parts by 3D Printing, Debinding, and Sintering

Allowing for complex shape and low energy consumption, 3D printing, debinding, and sintering (PDS) is a promising and cost-effective additive manufacturing (AM) technology. Moreover, PDS is particularly suitable for producing bimetallic parts using two metal/polymer composite filaments in the same nozzle, known as co-extrusion, or in different nozzles, in a setup called bi-extrusion. The paper describes a first attempt to produce bimetallic parts using Inconel 718 and AISI 316L stainless steel via PDS. The primary goal is to assess the metallurgical characteristics, part shrinkage, relative density, and the interdiffusion phenomenon occurring at the interface of the two alloys. A first set of experiments was conducted to investigate the effect of deposition patterns on the above-mentioned features while keeping the same binding and sintering heat treatment. Different sintering temperatures (1260 °C, 1300 °C, and 1350 °C) and holding times (4 h and 8 h) were then investigated to improve the density of the printed parts. Co-extruded parts showed a better dimensional stability against the variations induced by the binding and sintering heat treatment, compared to bi-extruded samples. In co-extruded parts, shrinkage depends on scanning strategy; moreover, the higher the temperature and holding time of the sintering heat treatment, the higher the density reached. The work expands the knowledge of PDS for metallic multi-materials, opening new possibilities for designing and utilizing functionally graded materials in optimized components. With the ability to create intricate geometries and lightweight structures, PDS enables energy savings across industries, such as the aerospace and automotive industries, by reducing component weight and enhancing fuel efficiency. Furthermore, PDS offers substantial advantages in terms of resource efficiency, waste reduction, and energy consumption compared to other metal AM technologies, thereby reducing environmental impact.

Influence of process parameters and post-molding condition on shrinkage and warpage of injection-molded plastic parts with complex geometry

Influence of process parameters and post-molding condition on shrinkage and warpage of injection-molded plastic parts with complex geometry

Supersolidus liquid phase sintering of water-atomized low-alloy steel in binder jetting additive manufacturing

This work investigates the feasibility of net shape manufacturing of parts using water-atomized (WA) low-alloy steel with comparable densities to conventional powder metallurgy parts via binder jetting additive manufacturing (BJAM) and supersolidus liquid phase sintering (SLPS). In this study, a modified water-atomized powder grade with similar composition as MPIF FL-4405 was printed and pressure-less sintered under a 95% N2–5% H2 atmosphere. Combinations of two different sintering schedules (direct-sintering and step-sintering) and three different heating rates (1, 3, and 5 °C/min) were applied to study the densification, shrinkage, and microstructural evolution of BJAM parts. This study demonstrated that, although the green density of the BJAM samples was ∼42% of the theoretical density, the sintered parts experienced large linear shrinkage up to ∼25% and reached ∼97% density without compromising shape fidelity. This was ascribed to a more homogeneous pore distribution throughout the part before ramping up to the SLPS region. The synergistic effects of carbon residue, the slow heating rate, and the additional isothermal holding stage at the solid-phase sintering region were determined to be the key factors for sintering BJAM WA low-alloy steel powders with resulting minimal entrapped porosity and good shape fidelity.

Development of Fused Deposition Modeling of Multiple Materials (FD3M) Through Dynamic Coaxial Extrusion.

Multimaterial additive manufacturing is expanding the design space realizable with 3D printing, yet is largely constrained to sequential deposition of each individual material. The ability to coextrude two materials and change the ratio of materials while printing would enable custom-tailored polymer composites. Here, the evolution of a dynamic material coextrusion process for additive manufacturing capable of printing any ratio between and including two neat input materials is described across 3 hot-end generations and 14 implemented design iterations. The designs evolved with increased understanding of manufacturing constraints associated with the additive manufacturing of metal components with internal flow bore diameters on the order of 2 mm and typical bore length around 50 mm. The second generation overcame this issue by partitioning the design into two pieces to locate the flow channel geometry at the interface between the components so that the details could be easily printed on the components' external surfaces. The third concept generation then focused on minimizing flow channel volume to reduce the average length when transitioning between materials by 92%. The third-generation design was also used to investigate the improvements in dimensional stability during annealing of acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) made possible by coextruding ABS with a polycarbonate (PC) core. The standard deviation of part shrinkage after annealing was 7.08% for the neat ABS but reduced to 0.24% for the coextruded ABS/PC components.

Modular injection mould with a conformal cooling channel for the production of hydraulic filter housings

The article presents the idea, design, construction, and implementation of a production technology for hydraulic filter housings using a modular injection mould. The annual demand for filters for specialised marine hydraulics systems by HYDROMEGA averages about 1,000 pieces. Two sizes of filters with the same housing connection dimensions are used. Due to the small scale of production, the modular injection mould was designed and manufactured to press two types of a polyamide housing. Changing the shape of a moulded part requires removing or installing modules that change the die and punch dimensions, which reduces the costs of production of a single tool compared to the costs of production of two separate tools. The mould design process was supported by the numerical analyses of operation and processes of plastic injection, cooling, moulded part shrinkage, and mould cavity deaeration. A mould and a series of moulded parts were manufactured and verified positively for dimensions and durability.

Effect of sintering temperature on binder jetting additively manufactured stainless steel 316L: densification, microstructure evolution and mechanical properties

Binder jetting (BJ) selectivity jets binders on powders to form green parts efficiently. The following sintering process is indispensable to consolidating as-printed loose parts, inevitably introducing shrinkage and grain growth. The pore morphology and grain size will change significantly in the sintering process, directly affecting the sintered parts' density and mechanical properties. However, there is no research on the microstructure evolution of BJ 316L in the sintering process to date, which is essential for the further application of BJ 316L. This study used a solid state sintering process to consolidate the BJ 316L green parts. The effect of vacuum sintering temperature (1300 °C–1400 °C) on the density, porosity, linear shrinkage, microstructure evolution, and tensile properties of the as-sintered parts was investigated. Results indicated that the sintering temperature significantly affects the properties of the sintered 316L parts. Notably, the grain size and tensile strength strongly correlate with porosity. The sintered 316L parts have a relative density of 92.0% and preferable mechanical properties (ultimate tensile strength of up to 473.7 MPa and elongation of up to 40.22%) after sintering at 1380 °C. The pores in the sintered BJ 316L were distinguished into three types according to pores' size and distribution characteristics. The potential influences of these three types of pores on the properties of the sintered BJ 316L were discussed. This work is engaged in providing a detailed reference for the densification and microstructure evolution of BJ 316L parts.

Processing by Laser Stereolithography and <i>In Vitro</i> Biological Evaluation of Hydroxyapatite Scaffolds Mimicking Human Trabecular Bone Architecture

Hydroxyapatite (HA) ceramic scaffolds are commonly used as bone graft substitutes. Design of such scaffolds is a challenge to improve biological properties and extend the applications of HA ceramics in the field of bone tissue engineering. In this work, we investigated the processing and the in vitro properties of HA ceramic scaffolds mimicking human trabecular bone architecture. Samples of human tibial trabecular bone were collected (University Hospital Center of Limoges) and scanned by X-Ray μ-computed tomography (μ-CT) to generate 3D model database. From this computer-aided design, HA ceramic scaffolds were shaped layer-by-layer by additive manufacturing using laser stereolithography (SLA). Then, green parts were sintered to obtain dense ceramic scaffolds. The shaped parts were compared to the model (wall thickness, size, and geometry of the porous network) using image analysis. A good agreement was found. Only small differences were detected due to a light overpolymerization or to some unprinted very small details that were not linked to a polymerized area of the previous layer. Due to part shrinkage during sintering a magnifying factor has to be applied to the scanned CAO model to match the real dimensions of the trabecular bone sample. Human mesenchymal stem cell (hMSC) cultures were performed to investigate the biological properties of these scaffolds (cell attachment and proliferation of hMSC). These preliminary biological evaluations show the good biocompatibility and cell adhesion of the HA substitute. This work evidences the efficiency of SLA to produce ceramic scaffold architectures mimicking that of the natural trabecular bone with promising biological behavior.

Mechanical properties and injection molding processability of glass fiber modified polylactic acid composites

In order to promote the development and application of environment-friendly plastics, a glass fiber-modified starch/polylactic acid composite was prepared by the melt extrusion method. The influence of glass fiber content on the mechanical and thermal properties of the composite was studied, and multi-objective optimization of the injection molding process was carried out with consideration of the influence of material properties. The results show that with the increase of glass fiber content from 0 to 5%, the tensile strength of the composite decreases first and then increases to an average of 60Mpa, which is about 30% higher than that of pure polylactic acid. The elastic modulus and thermal stability increase, while the elongation at break and flow rate decrease with the increase of glass fiber content. In addition, the optimized injection parameters are obtained, which can effectively reduce the warping deformation, volume shrinkage, and residual stress of injection parts. Glass fiber modified starch/polylactic acid composites show great potential in engineering application, and may provide a reference for the development and application of high-performance and green degradable materials.

Shrinkage behaviour of material extrusion steel 316L: influence of primary 3D printing parameters

Purpose The wide application of metal material extrusion (MEX) has been hampered by the practicalities associated with the resulting shrinkage of the final parts when commercial three-dimensional (3D) printing equipment is used. The shrinkage behaviour of MEX metal parts is a very important aspect of the MEX metal production process, as the parts must be accurately oversized to compensate for shrinkage. This paper aims to investigate the influence of primary 3D printing parameters, namely, print speed, layer height and print angle, on the shrinkage behaviour of MEX Steel 316L parts. Design/methodology/approach Two groups of dog-bone and rectangular-shape specimens were produced with the BASF Ultrafuse Steel 316L metal filament. The length, width and thickness of the specimens were measured pre- and post-debinding and sintering to calculate the percentile shrinkage rates. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to evaluate and rank the significance of each manufacturing parameter on shrinkage. Typical main print quality issues experienced in this analysis are also reported. Findings The shrinkage rates of the tested specimens ranged from 15.5 to 20.4% along the length and width axis and 18.5% to 23.1% along the thickness axis of the specimens. Layer height and raster angle were the most statistically significant parameters influencing shrinkage, while print speed had very little influence. Three types of defects were observed, including surface roughness, surface deformation (warping and distortion) and balling defects. Originality/value This paper bridges an existing gap in MEX Steel 316L literature, with a focus on the relationship between MEX manufacturing parameters and subsequent shrinkage behaviour. This study provides an in-depth analysis of the relationship between manufacturing parameters – layer height, raster angle and print speed and subsequent shrinkage behaviour, thereby providing further information on the relationship between the former and the latter.

A novel method to avoid the sintering shrinkage of Al2O3-Cr cermets formed by direct ink writing

The three-dimensional (3D) printed ceramic body often shrinks considerably after thermal processing, which seriously affects the forming accuracy of the final formed parts. In this report, the Al2O3-Cr parts were prepared by 3D direct ink writing. After sintering, the final formed parts have no shrinkage and expanded slightly compared with the green body. Cr plays an important role in this process. The oxidation of Cr causes volume expansion to make up for the sintering shrinkage of the ceramic matrix. The Al2O3-Cr cermet ink exhibits shear-thinning and viscoelastic inversion characteristics, indicating suitability for direct ink writing. A series of printed compacts with different metal and ceramic ratios were sintered at 1600 ℃. The related mechanical properties and microstructure of Al2O3-Cr parts prepared by 3D direct ink writing were investigated. The data of XPS and SEM indicate that Cr reacts with oxygen in the system to produce Cr2O3 during sintering, resulting in the sintered part's volume expansion. This new method provides a good strategy for controlling and eliminating the shrinkage of cermet parts during sintering.