Systematic evaluations of melt-extruded filament for fused deposition modeling-mediated 3D printing

Abstract

Aim: The significant critical barrier in the ascension of fused deposition modeling (FDM) into a scalable technology is the lack of defined quality benchmarks for validating filament performance. To avoid this issue, we aimed to create a comprehensive quantitative approach providing a road map to evaluate the fabricated filament for successful FDM 3D printing. Materials & methods: A detailed in vitro physico-technological analysis including axial as well as oscillatory stress tests were performed to validate the melt-extruded filament. Results & conclusion: The results from the above noted tests as well as microscopic examinations suggested toward the superiority of 6.5% plasticizer-loaded drug-polymer filaments in terms of mechanical prerequisites like feedability, extrudability and printability, as well as complete molecular homogenization.