Studies on 3D Printability of Novel Impact Modified Nylon 6: Experimental Investigations and Performance Evaluation

The development of functional polymer parts with complex geometrical shape has been possible through additive manufacturing. In this research work, the issues such as warping, filament clogging, and layer delamination related to fused deposition modeling-based 3D printing of nylon 6 are focused and its poor printability is improved. Nylon 6 is toughened by blending with an impact modifier, ethylene terpolymer. Complex viscosity, storage, and loss moduli of modified nylon increase significantly, which help to improve 3D printability of nylon 6. 3D printing of modified nylon is performed at optimized conditions, such as printing temperature, print speed, bed temperature, and cooling speed. Izod impact strength of 3D printed nylon 6-based blend is observed approximate to 543 J m(-1), which is significantly higher than the value (48 J m(-1)) available in literature for injection molded pristine nylon 6. Thermomechanical analysis of modified nylon shows higher coefficient of linear thermal expansion in normal direction as compared to that in flow direction, which is due to the orientation of polymer crystals during processing. The voids are observed on the cross-sectional surface of impact fractured sample, which are responsible to produce light-weight 3D printed specimens.