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Optical and mechanical testing of 3D printed parts made of high-viscosity silicone to identify process parameters and design advice for 3D printing and printer development

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  16 May 2024

Joel Schön
Affiliation:
Technische Hochschule Nürnberg Georg Simon Ohm, Germany
Robin Löffler*
Affiliation:
Technische Hochschule Nürnberg Georg Simon Ohm, Germany
Michael Koch
Affiliation:
Technische Hochschule Nürnberg Georg Simon Ohm, Germany

Abstract

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The additive manufacturing of parts made from close-to-production materials poses a great challenge. One example are highly viscous silicones, as used in injection moulding. For small production quantities, the manufacturing of injection moulds is uneconomical. This paper presents tensile specimens printed with an in-house developed dispensing system, which are analysed for air cavities (micro-CT scans) and mechanical properties. Based on the results, advice for the design and slicing parameters of parts using high-viscosity silicones in AM by means of material extrusion are developed.

Type
Design for Additive Manufacturing
Creative Commons
Creative Common License - CCCreative Common License - BYCreative Common License - NCCreative Common License - ND
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives licence (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/), which permits non-commercial re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is unaltered and is properly cited. The written permission of Cambridge University Press must be obtained for commercial re-use or in order to create a derivative work.
Copyright
The Author(s), 2024.

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