Impact resistance and failure mechanism of 3D printed continuous fiber-reinforced cellular composites

Journal of the Textile Institute · 2020 · 67 citations

• Composite material
• Materials science
• Mechanical engineering

The present research investigated previously unexplored attributes of 3D printed continuous fiberglass reinforced Nylon composites, Drop-weight and pendulum (Charpy and Izod) impact resistance including their failure mechanisms with a view to assessing their suitability for prospective high-performance applications such as aerospace, automobile and building industries. The composites were printed with different cellular structures (triangular, hexagonal, rectangular and solid) and three distinct fiber orientations (0/0/0/0, 0/90/0/90 and 0/45/90/-45). Results of the impact assessment of the developed composites exhibited substantial performance when compared to traditional 3D orthogonal plain-woven composites indicating 3D printing process as a promising composite fabrication technology. The effect of fiber orientation was very dominant towards dictating mechanical properties; cross-lay samples (0/90/0/90) absorbed the highest Drop-weigh impact energy followed by quasi-isotropic (0/45/90/-45) and unidirectional (0/0/0/0) composites, while the highest pendulum impact energy was showed by unidirectional composites, followed by cross-lay and quasi-isotropic samples. Incorporation of cellular structure had some effect on the properties measured and composite weight reduction; however, relative contribution of different structures was confounding associating a lot of factors that warn further research.

The Road to Improved Fiber-Reinforced 3D Printing Technology

Technologies · 2020 · 60 citations

• Computer Science
• Materials science
• Computer Science

Three-dimensional printing (3DP) is at the forefront of the disruptive innovations adding a new dimension in the material fabrication process with numerous design flexibilities. Especially, the ability to reinforce the plastic matrix with nanofiber, microfiber, chopped fiber and continuous fiber has put the technology beyond imagination in terms of multidimensional applications. In this technical paper, fiber and polymer filaments used by the commercial 3D printers to develop fiber-reinforced composites are characterized to discover the unknown manufacturing specifications such as fiber–polymer distribution and fiber volume fraction that have direct practical implications in determining and tuning composites’ properties and their applications. Additionally, the capabilities and limitations of 3D printing software to process materials and control print parameters in relation to print quality, structural integrity and properties of printed composites are discussed. The work in this paper aims to present constructive evaluation and criticism of the current technology along with its pros and cons in order to guide prospective users and 3D printing equipment manufacturers on improvements, as well as identify the potential avenues of development of the next generation 3D printed fiber-reinforced composites.