Constitutive modeling of fused deposition modeling acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS)

Abstract

Fused deposition modeling is a rapid prototyping process that is widely used to create prototypes. Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene is the most widely used material for fused deposition modeling. The parts are fabricated in a layer by layer fashion and the individual layers are composed of fibers that are deposited, thus making them similar to parts made of a composite material. This study tries to model the behavior of this composite-like material to aid designers in designing parts made of such a “rapid prototyped” material. The mechanical material constants that need to be determined in order to obtain the compliance/ stiffness matrix of the material have been identified and appropriate experiments have been conducted to determine them. Biaxial tensile tests have been conducted to obtain the Young’s moduli and Poisson’s ratios. Torsion tests have been conducted to obtain the Shear moduli. Three point bending tests and combined loading tests have been conducted. Most of the experimental results are in excellent agreement with the analytical/finite element simulation results. Some that are not give a greater insight into the material behavior and have been discussed.