Extreme roughness reduction and ultrafine quality of innovative dual function material extrusion 3D printer

PurposeThis paper aims to use hybrid manufacturing (HM) to overcome several drawbacks of material extrusion three-dimensional (3D) printers, such as low dimension ranging from 0.2 to 0.5 mu m, resulting in a noticeable staircase effect and elevated surface roughness.Design/methodology/approachSubtractive manufacturing (SM) through computer numerical control milling is renowned for its precision and superior surface finish. This study integrates additive manufacturing (AM) and SM into a single material extrusion 3D printer platform, creating a HM system. Two sets of specimens, one exclusively printed and the other subjected to both printing and milling, were assessed for dimension accuracy and surface roughness.FindingsThe outcomes were promising, with postmilling accuracy reaching 99.94%. Significant reductions in surface roughness were observed at 90 degrees (93.4% decrease from 15.598 to 1.030 mu m), 45 degrees (89% decrease from 26.727 to 2.946 mu m) and the face plane (71% decrease from 12.176 to 3.535 mu m).Practical implicationsThe 3D printer was custom-built based on material extrusion and modified with an additional milling tool on the same gantry. An economic evaluation based on cost-manufacturing demonstrated that constructing this dual-function 3D printer costs less than US$560 in materials, offering valuable insights for researchers looking to replicate a similar machine.Originality/valueThe modified general 3D printer platform offered an easy way to postprocessing without removing the workpiece from the bed. This mechanism can reduce the downtime of changing the machine. The proven increased dimension accuracy and reduced surface roughness value increase the value of 3D-printed specimens.