The Effect of Cell Size and Surface Roughness on the Compressive Properties of ABS Lattice Structures Fabricated by Fused Deposition Modeling
Abstract
Researchers looking to improve the surface roughness of acrylonitrile butadiene styrene
(ABS) parts fabricated by fused deposition modeling (FDM) have determined that acetone
smoothing not only achieves improved surface roughness but increases compressive strength as
well. However, the sensitivity of ABS parts to acetone smoothing has not been explored. In this
study we investigated FDM-fabricated ABS lattice structures of various cell sizes subjected to
cold acetone vapor smoothing to determine the combined effect of cell size and acetone
smoothing on the compressive properties of the lattice structures. The acetone-smoothed
specimens performed better than the as-built specimens in both compression modulus and
maximum load, and there was a decrease in those compressive properties with decreasing cell
size. The difference between as-built and acetone-smoothed specimens was found to increase
with decreasing cell size for the maximum load.