Examining the Build Properties of PolyJet Printed Multi-material Parts in Additive Manufacturing

PolyJet technology is one of the advanced additive manufacturing technologies booming quickly and it can fabricate the parts with multi-material and multi-color. In the present study, the build properties of multi-material parts produced with PolyJet technology are discussed. Effects of build properties were examined by three process parameters namely finish type, material combination and design of the samples. Digital materials of VeroWhite-TangoPlus, VeroClear-VeroWhite and VeroClear-TangoPlus are chosen for printing the dice, stacking-1 and stacking-2 samples on both the matte and glossy finish. Taguchi’s L₁₈ (2¹, 3²) orthogonal array is selected for experimental design to conduct the trails with minimum number of repeats. Importance of each parameter has been examined by analysis of signal-to-noise (S/N) ratio. Findings indicate that glossy finished stacking-2 sample printed by VeroWhite-TangoPlus provides the optimum build properties. Material combination is the most dominant factor, followed by finish type and geometric design. Furthermore, printing time and consumption of support material are higher in VeroClear material when compared to other materials. The result of this study is an understanding of which process parameters and geometric design affect the build properties. This study provides a distinctive method for selecting the optimum process parameters and stimulates the research toward the material properties and digital manufacturing.