Optimizing PEEK impact strength through multi-objective FDM 3D printing

Abstract

Because of their adaptability and low cost, thermoplastic materials including polylactic acid, nylon, polyethylene terephthalate
glycol, acrylonitrile butadiene styrene, polylactic acid, and thermoplastic polyurethane are preferred in fused deposition
modeling 3D printing. Unfortunately, compatibility issues with current equipment and procedures caused by high grade
thermoplastic material have prevented its widespread use in FDM 3D printing. Making the necessary changes to 3D printing
gear, software, and settings to accommodate new materials may be a time-consuming and costly process. The unique processing
conditions and parameters required by each material make quality control and consistency maintenance a challenging task.
Because of this variation, 3D printing cannot produce consistently high-quality parts. In addition, specific considerations are
needed for optimizing the FDM settings for high-grade polymers (HGPs) such as polyether ether ketone (PEEK) because of
the unique properties of these materials. As a result of the printing process's large temperature gradient and uneven heat
distribution, residual stresses and deformations might occur, diminishing the material's quality and, more specifically, its impact
strength. Using only three process parameters—build orientation, in-fill density, and chamber temperature—this paper
improves a commercially available 3D printing PEEK. Additionally, the study endeavors to develop a model that can foretell
the 3D printed object's Impact Strength (IS), a crucial factor to consider. In this article, we look for evidence of a relationship
between the impact strength, printing time, and material use, which are all response variables or output variables. There seems
to be a strong link between them, as shown by the results. The subsequent IS of 86.5 kJ/m², print time of 89 minutes, and
material use of 3.26 grams are attained by using a particular parameter configuration. Setting the print density to 100% to
maximize impact strength results in a notable 9.18% reduction in printing time and an 11.66% drop in material use. When a
number of goals must be satisfied, this optimization method demonstrates that composite desirability is the way to go. A
determination coefficient more than 50% is achieved by the suggested regression model for predicting the impact strength.