Comparison of the Surface Quality of the Products Manufactured by the Plastic Injection Molding and SLA and FDM Method

Plastic injection molding is a widely used manufacturing method in the automotive and machinery sectors. The design and manufacture of the appropriate mold needed to manufacture a plastic product with this method are a difficult, time-consuming, and costly process. Due to the developing technology and increasing quality requirements, this method remains insufficient, especially for sensitive and intricate parts that will be manufactured in low numbers. In additive manufacturing, the 3D printing technique is developing rapidly, and high-quality products can now be obtained with this method. In this study, sample pieces manufactured by fused deposition modeling (FDM), stereolithography (SLA) 3D printing techniques were compared with pieces manufactured by the plastic injection molding method. Prototype products were examined in terms of manufacturing techniques, appearance, and surface qualities. As a result of the study, it was determined that the parts manufactured by the SLA 3D printing technique were better in terms of the ease of manufacturing, appearance, and surface roughness and that this was followed by plastic injection molding and the 3D printing FDM method, respectively.

Keywords:

Plastic injection molding, 3D printer, additive manufacturing, stereolithography (SLA) fused deposition modelling (FDM),

PDF

___

M. Asif et al., “A new photopolymer extrusion 5-axis 3D printer,” Addit. Manuf., vol. 23, pp. 355–361, 2018, doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.addma.2018.08.026.
D. G. Bekas, Y. Hou, Y. Liu, and A. Panesar, “3D printing to enable multifunctionality in polymer-based composites: A review,” Compos. Part B Eng., vol. 179, p. 107540, 2019, doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compositesb.2019.107540.
A. C. de Leon, Q. Chen, N. B. Palaganas, J. O. Palaganas, J. Manapat, and R. C. Advincula, “High performance polymer nanocomposites for additive manufacturing applications,” React. Funct. Polym., vol. 103, pp. 141–155, 2016, doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.reactfunctpolym.2016.04.010.
M. Chapiro, “Current achievements and future outlook for composites in 3D printing,” Reinf. Plast., vol. 60, no. 6, pp. 372–375, 2016, doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.repl.2016.10.002.
J. R. C. Dizon, A. H. Espera, Q. Chen, and R. C. Advincula, “Mechanical characterization of 3D-printed polymers,” Addit. Manuf., vol. 20, pp. 44–67, 2018, doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.addma.2017.12.002.
I. DURGUN, “OTOMOTİV ÜRÜN GELİŞTİRME SÜRECİNDE DOĞRUDAN DİJİTAL İMALAT,” İleri Teknol. Bilim. Derg., vol. 7, no. 1, pp. 90–96.
K. A. M. Menderes, A. İPEKÇİ, and H. SARUHAN, “Investigation of 3d printing filling structures effect on mechanical properties and surface roughness of PET-G material products,” Gaziosmanpaşa Bilim. Araştırma Derg., vol. 6, no. Özel Sayı (ISMSIT2017), pp. 114–121, 2017.
Y. Li, B. S. Linke, H. Voet, B. Falk, R. Schmitt, and M. Lam, “Cost, sustainability and surface roughness quality – A comprehensive analysis of products made with personal 3D printers,” CIRP J. Manuf. Sci. Technol., vol. 16, pp. 1–11, 2017, doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cirpj.2016.10.001.
S. H. Tang, Y. M. Kong, S. M. Sapuan, R. Samin, and S. Sulaiman, “Design and thermal analysis of plastic injection mould,” J. Mater. Process. Technol., vol. 171, no. 2, pp. 259–267, 2006, doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmatprotec.2005.06.075.
I. Martínez-Mateo, F. J. Carrión-Vilches, J. Sanes, and M. D. Bermúdez, “Surface damage of mold steel and its influence on surface roughness of injection molded plastic parts,” Wear, vol. 271, no. 9–10, pp. 2512–2516, 2011.
M. Wang, L. Guo, and H. Sun, “Manufacture of Biomaterials,” Ref. Modul. Biomed. Sci. Encycl. Biomed. Eng., 2019.
K. Kun, “Reconstruction and Development of a 3D Printer Using FDM Technology,” Procedia Eng., vol. 149, pp. 203–211, 2016, doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.proeng.2016.06.657.
A. A. Konta, M. García-Piña, and D. R. Serrano, “Personalised 3D printed medicines: which techniques and polymers are more successful?,” Bioengineering, vol. 4, no. 4, p. 79, 2017.
S. Wang, Y. Ma, Z. Deng, K. Zhang, and S. Dai, “Implementation of an elastoplastic constitutive model for 3D-printed materials fabricated by stereolithography,” Addit. Manuf., vol. 33, p. 101104, 2020.
Z. Weng, Y. Zhou, W. Lin, T. Senthil, and L. Wu, “Structure-property relationship of nano enhanced stereolithography resin for desktop SLA 3D printer,” Compos. Part A Appl. Sci. Manuf., vol. 88, pp. 234–242, 2016, doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compositesa.2016.05.035.