A review of melt extrusion additive manufacturing processes: I. Process design and modeling

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to systematically and critically review the literature related to process design and modeling of fused deposition modeling (FDM) and similar extrusion-based additive manufacturing (AM) or rapid prototyping processes. Design/methodology/approach – A systematic review of the literature focusing on process design and mathematical process modeling was carried out. Findings – FDM and similar processes are among the most widely used rapid prototyping processes with growing application in finished part manufacturing. Key elements of the typical processes, including the material feed mechanism, liquefier and print nozzle; the build surface and environment; and approaches to part finishing are described. Approaches to estimating the motor torque and power required to achieve a desired filament feed rate are presented. Models of required heat flux, shear on the melt and pressure drop in the liquefier are reviewed. On leaving the print nozzle, die swelling and bead cooling are considered. Approaches to modeling the spread of a deposited road of material and the bonding of polymer roads to one another are also reviewed. Originality/value – To date, no other systematic review of process design and modeling research related to melt extrusion AM has been published. Understanding and improving process models will be key to improving system process controls, as well as enabling the development of advanced engineering material feedstocks for FDM processes.