Exploring Abrasive Flow Finishing of 3D Printed Mesoscale Passage

Prabhat Kumar; Vikas Nandal; Amit Gupta

Abstract

3-D printed parts and components have gained wide applicability which continues to increase day by day. However, due to the very nature of 3-D printing process, i.e. layer additions, outer surfaces are subject to poor finishing. Finishing 3-D printed parts is thus a necessity if they are to be used for prototyping or functional purpose. But, finishing remains a challenge, especially if the part contains passages that lie within and below meso-scale. As, it was not possible to pass the modified existing media through 1mm passage, a new media was synthesized using a bio-coagulant called Xanthan Gum which acts as a thickening and binding agent. Further experiments were performed on Two-Way AFM using newly synthesized media by varying the ratio of its components which resulted in successful flow of media through 1mm passage also. The performed work thus establishes AFM as a suitable process for finishing 3-D printed parts containing meso-scale passages up to 1mm width. Also, Xanthan Gum is found to be a promising agent for binding and thickening media. On the basis of this study, further explorations on micro-domain passages can also be performed.

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