- 26 views
- 90 downloads
Technical and Design Optimizations of the Polymer Extrusion 3D Printing Process towards Circular Economy
-
- Author / Creator
- Kuclourya, Tanay
-
Plastics have emerged as one of the essential materials present on the planet. However, its accumulation can negatively impact the environment if not disposed of properly. To counter this issue, the ‘Circular Economy’ is one such economic growth model with one of the objectives of using plastic resources efficiently. Several plastic recycling methodologies have been derived, out of which Distributed Recycling via Additive Manufacturing (DRAM) is one of them. It is a closed-loop material reprocessing solution that promotes a circular economy. In this thesis, three main research objectives are targeted. The first objective is to form an optimal link between two different areas of knowledge domains: plastic recycling and additive manufacturing. With an aim to validate the theoretical models related to these two fields, a Scientometric analysis followed by a critical review has been conducted to measure the former knowledge domains of plastic recycling and additive manufacturing. The second research objective is yet another attempt to promote the concept of Circular economy as it tends to fill the literature gaps related to material properties and effect of recycling at different stages of the DRAM process through some experimentations. This thesis contributes to these research gaps by comparing the effect of reprocessing cycles (recycling) with the effect of FDM printing parameters such as Raster angle orientation, Infill density and Extrusion Temperature on the mechanical properties of the 3D printed material. By setting up Design of Experiments, these four parameters are ranked based on their impact on the tensile properties of PLA dog bone specimens. Additionally, a novel analysis on time and the number of specimens to be 3D printed at each reprocessing stage has also been conducted for assisting the future researchers in managing their printing schedule especially in the recycling domain. Lastly, with a vision of utilizing Plastic Solid Wastes (PSW) in 3D printing and contributing to Circular Economy, the third and the final objective of this thesis is to design a novel 3D printing system which targets high throughput and expands the range of feedstock material. A successful attempt has been made in this direction by designing a hybrid high-throughput 3D printer which works on the FDM and Direct FDM technologies. The focus and scope of this thesis was to utilize this hybrid system to print both virgin as well as recycled PLA separately, with a future goal to use both the technologies simultaneously for printing multi-material structures and also to use non-conventional printing materials. In this work, after several trials of printing and setting up some printing parameters, the proposed system was able to print with virgin as well as recycled PLA.
-
- Subjects / Keywords
-
- Additive Manufacturing
- Plastic Recycling
- Fused Deposition Modeling
- Distributed Recycling via Additive Manufacturing
- Extrusion Additive Manufacturing
- Direct Fused Deposition Modeling
- Polylactic Acid
- Raster Angle
- Infill Density
- Extrusion Temperature
- Reprocessing Cycles
- Ultimate Tensile Strength
- Taguchi Analysis
-
- Graduation date
- Fall 2022
-
- Type of Item
- Thesis
-
- Degree
- Master of Science
-
- License
- This thesis is made available by the University of Alberta Library with permission of the copyright owner solely for non-commercial purposes. This thesis, or any portion thereof, may not otherwise be copied or reproduced without the written consent of the copyright owner, except to the extent permitted by Canadian copyright law.