Polymer-Print

The project Polymer-Print aims to replace metal parts, traditionally made of steel and aluminum, with plastic materials through additive manufacturing FDM (Fused Deposition Modeling). In many applications where loads are not entirely decisive, polymeric materials can fulfill the design requirements of many parts. Although they do not have yield limits and Young's modulus as high as metallic materials, they can be an effective option to lose weight in mechanical components, since the density of plastics is lower than ones of metallic materials, making them an option to study for various industries, especially aeronautics.

Parts in 5083 aluminum will be studied under tensile loads of 2000kg, and how the geometry must be modified so that they can be manufactured by additive 3D printing methods using technical polymeric materials.

Since the properties of polymers are lower than those of metals, more support surface is required to transmit the same load to achieve a lower pressure, as well as a better distribution of the load in clamps to improve the geometry stability. The FDM manufacturing process produces elements that are not isotropic, so it will be crucial to align the part layer deposition in the best direction to support the main stress with guarantees.

The characterization of the original part performance is necessary to have a starting point from which to start the optimization and modification of the piece in concert with the change of material. CAE simulations, in combination with the constraints of the manufacturing software, define the final geometry of the modified part for the new polymeric material. The new geometry must pass a tensile test to ensure that the design requirements and the simulations carried out have been accurate enough to finally validate the part.