Intensifying Hands-on Learning and Experimentation of Fused Deposition Modeling Three-Dimensional Printers

Abstract

Additive Manufacturing (AM) is rapidly gaining popularity as a manufacturing process due to its ability to create unique geometries with unique material compositions across a different range of length scales from single microns to multiple meters. The 3D printers are able to create any complex object with improved cost and performance compared to subtractive manufacturing which is among the most accessible and versatile machines in the manufacturing industry. The present work focuses on the hands-on learning approach for students to identify and learn working on 3D printers so that they understand the product, system and software and process parameters in a better way. Students print 3D models for subject learning and also performed tensile testing and fractography for different infill densities ranging from 20 to 100%. It is observed that PLA printed specimen in XY Plane exhibits the maximum tensile stress of 45.09 MPa and elongation as 14.68%. Also, the fractured surface for XY orientation displayed an intermediate brittle-ductile fracture behavior with fracture morphology depicting difference in failure for different infill densities.