Abstract
Interest in three-dimensional (3D) printing processes has grown significantly, and several types have been developed. These 3D printing processes are classified as Selective Laser Sintering (SLS), Stereo-Lithography Apparatus (SLA), and Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM). SLS can be applied to many materials, but because it uses a laser-based material removal process, it is expensive. SLA enables fast and precise manufacturing, but available materials are limited. FDM printing's benefits are its reasonable price and easy accessibility. However, metal printing using FDM can involve technical problems, such as suitable component supply or the thermal expansion of the heating part. Thus, FDM printing primarily uses materials with low melting points, such as acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) or polylactic acid (PLA) resin. In this study, an FDM process for enabling metal printing is suggested. Particularly, the nozzle and heatsink for this process are focused for stable printing. To design the nozzle and heatsink, multi-physical phenomena, including thermal expansion and heat transfer, had to be considered. Therefore, COMSOL Multiphysics, an FEM analysis program, was used to analyze the maximum temperature, thermal expansion, and principal stress. Finally, its performance was confirmed through an experiment.
