Mechanical Behaviour of Macroscopic Interfaces for 3D Printed Multi-material Samples

Abstract

The development of 3D Printing technologies introduced new possibilities regarding multi-material part production. Fused Filament Fabrication (FFF) is one of those technologies suitable for multi-material 3D printing. Usually, multi-material parts are manufactured from different blends of the same material, also known as multi-colour 3D printing, or from materials with good chemical compatibility. Conventionally, a simple face-to-face bond interface between parts’ bodies and a chemical bond between thermoplastics define the mechanical performance of multi-material components. In this regard, the paper aimed to investigate the strength of the contact interface of multi-material specimens using a geometrical approach. Therefore, multiple interlocking interfaces were investigated, such as omega shape, T-shape, dovetail, and others for samples made of low-compatibility thermoplastic materials, acrylic styrene-acrylonitrile (ASA), thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU). The results showed that macroscopic inter-locking interfaces are significantly increasing the mechanical properties.