Influence of fused filament fabrication parameters on the flexural strength of nylon

Additive manufacturing (AM), particularly Fused Filament Fabrication (FFF) is a fast-growing and affordable layer-by-layer manufacturing process. The mechanical properties of the printed parts directly depend on the FFF process parameters. The purpose of this study was to assess the effect of printing parameters on flexural strength and identify the optimum parameters for nylon material. The controllable printing conditions selected for the Ultimaker Nylon material were layer thickness, print speed, infill geometry, and nozzle temperature. The specimens were subjected to a three-point bending test. Taguchi L9 optimization method, ANOVA, and the interaction plot were used to investigate the influence of the process parameters. The main results indicate that layer thickness is the most influential parameter, followed by infill pattern and print speed, while nozzle temperature showed the lowest significance on flexural strength. The optimum printing parameters were found to be 0.1 mm layer thickness, 40 mm/s print speed, gyroid infill pattern, and 250 °C nozzle temperature. The work examines the flexural performance of nylon material which is understudied in the available literature.