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.