3D printing finite element analysis of continuous fiber reinforced composite materials considering printing pressure

Continuous fiber reinforced thermoplastic composite (CFRTC) 3D printing technology, as one of the most remarkable manufacturing techniques, has made significant advancements in various fields, including aerospace and automobile manufacturing. However, there is a dearth of research on simulating the printing process of CFRTC considering printing pressure. This article presents a finite element model that incorporates printing pressure and employs element birth and death technology to simulate the printing process. An in-situ pressure monitoring platform is built to provide real data for simulation. By comparing the simulation results with the experimental results, it is found that the errors of the finite element model simulation results with pressure under different printing parameters are predominantly less than 5 %. Furthermore, the impact of printing temperature and speed on the deformation of the 3D printed CFRTC is analyzed. The deformation of the printed sample is more sensitive to the printing temperature than the printing speed. This study can provide important theoretical guidance for engineering applications.