Numerical simulation of FDM manufactured parts by adopting approaches in composite material simulation

Additive manufacturing (AM) process is a promising manufacturing method that can replace conventional manufacturing methods, particularly for parts with complex geometry. It is the process of joining materials layer by layer to make object directly from 3D model data. Due to the inherent manufacturing process characteristics, such products experience material anisotropy with mechanical properties not easy to calculate analytically. On the other hand, numerical simulation is becoming increasingly important to solve complex problems such as in composite materials. However, no significant work of numerical simulation is reported for additive manufactured parts. This paper reports an approach to numerical simulation of additive manufactured parts by adopting methodologies developed for composite materials. To fill the existing gap in this area, the mechanical properties of FDM parts are experimentally studied. The experimental samples are produced from ULTEM9085 material with different printing parameters. The mechanical properties of the samples are then analyzed and numerical simulation using finite element method is done to compare the results with experimental results and verify the simulation model. The main aim of the study is to devise a numerical simulation method for additive manufactured parts by adopting existing methods for composite materials. (paper)