Abstract:
Additive manufacturing (AM) or 3D printing has revolutionized the manufacturing industry
through its rapid and geometrically-intricate capabilities as well as economic
benefits. One of the applications for AM is the development of multi-material structures
have the capability to create multi-material systems with tailored properties in user definable
locations. This research explored the feasibility of development of multi-material
composite-metal structure through Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM). The research objective
is realized through developing a design for manufacturing space, where interfacial
adhesion between the composite-metal layers is considered as the prime objective. For
this purpose, a hierarchical approach is adopted which constitutes initial optimization of
the interfacial adhesion of fiber-metal structure in the manufacturing process, achieved
by optimizing essential printing parameters and implementing heat treatment procedures,
including annealing and remelting. In addition to this, the subsequent effects of
heat treatment on the tensile strength and hardness of the fiber-metal structure were
also examined. The procedure was developed and optimized by the implementation
of advanced Design of Experiment approaches, which involved the utilization of exsitu
measurements. After manufacturing and heat treatment procedures, the research
proceeded to carry out a macroscopic analysis of the specimens. The multi-material
structure that has been developed can now be effectively utilized in a wide range of
electro-mechanical applications.
