Investigation on the effect of surface modification of 3D printed parts by nanoclay and dimethyl ketone

Fused deposition modeling (FDM) has emerged as one of the most utilized 3D printing technique. However, the surface properties of the FDM built parts lacks integrity due to layer by layer manufacturing technique. Therefore, post treatment is done on FDM printed parts. In the present research work, an effort has been made to improve the surface properties of the 3D printed parts by surface modification via chemical/nanoparticles. Nanoclay and dimethyl ketone were utilized for the surface modification of acrylonitrile butadiene styrene specimens. Parameters namely nanoclay content, immersion time, heat treatment and layer thickness were investigated to study their effect on surface roughness, surface hardness and dimensions. Also, the effect of nanoclay on UV absorbance of 3D printed parts was observed. Structural and morphological analysis was performed to characterize the surface of the 3D printed specimens after surface modification process. The results show that the surface roughness was reduced by 94.9%, surface hardness was increased by 9.7% while maintaining minimum dimensional deviation of -0.03 and +0.07mm. Also, UV absorbance was increased in 350-380nm range. The results of the present study highlight the capability of the surface modification process for improving the surface properties of FDM parts.