Abstract

Additive manufacturing (AM) continues to offer new possibilities in both production and economics. Various industries have quickly adopted AM to rapidly produce parts that would be difficult or cost prohibitive otherwise. Despite ongoing innovations that expand the technology's capabilities, significant limitations persist. Most AM processes are restricted by materials available, an inability to produce large parts, or by not achieving material deposition speeds and volumes to allow for certain products feasible. In addition, tight tolerances for features and surfaces cannot be produced without substantial post processing. Some of the post-processing techniques can even affect the material properties of the finished product. High-speed Fused Granulate Fabrication (FGF), a Large Format Additive Manufacturing (LFAM) process, in combination with Hybrid Manufacturing (HM) offers expanded capabilities as additive and subtractive processes are used within the same space. This combination also allows for a different kind of additive process where an open mold can be cut from a substrate and then filled using the FGF process to fabricate parts without layers. This, in combination with Large Area Additive Manufacturing (LAAM), enables parts to leverage the strengths of new and traditional methods at scales, speeds, methods, and materials not feasible with other additive processes. This study investigates the mechanical and tribological properties of three common polymer materials (polycarbonate, polyethylene terephthalate glycol, and fiberglass reinforced polypropylene) using both layered and open-molded FGF techniques. The results indicate that FGF can produce parts with superior strength and isotropy compared to traditional Fused Filament Fabrication (FFF) as well as properties comparable to traditional processes such as injection molding. Open molding produced parts with mechanical properties in certain materials that are close to those of layer-deposited parts, but with improved surface finishes. The findings suggest that material performance is highly dependent on the chosen method and material, with FGF providing significant advantages or disadvantages in terms of material properties and surface quality.

Degree

MS

College and Department

Ira A. Fulton College of Engineering; Manufacturing Engineering

Rights

https://lib.byu.edu/about/copyright/

Date Submitted

2024-12-20

Document Type

Thesis

Handle

http://hdl.lib.byu.edu/1877/etd13470

Keywords

additive manufacturing, FGF, fused granulate fabrication, LFAM, large format additive manufacturing, hybrid manufacturing

Language

english

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