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<p>This study presents the design, fabrication, and experimental validation of a modified fused filament fabrication (FFF) extruder head for the in-situ printing of continuous fiber-reinforced thermoplastic composites. The proposed system was developed to address major limitations of current continuous-fiber material-extrusion approaches, particularly insufficient fiber impregnation, unstable extrusion, and limited control of the thermal zone near the nozzle. The modified extruder incorporates a dual-input, single-output architecture with separate channels for Polyethylene Terephthalate Glycol (PETG) filament and continuous carbon fiber (CCF), which converge in a custom heated fusion chamber before extrusion through a brass nozzle. Composite specimens were printed in a 0° unidirectional configuration and characterized through scanning electron microscopy, white-light interferometric surface profilometry, tensile testing, flexural testing, and thermal simulation of the extruder design. SEM observations confirmed aligned fibers, localized polymer adhesion, and partial fiber–matrix bonding, although voids and incomplete wetting were also observed. The printed composites exhibited a tensile strength of 213&#xa0;MPa and a Young’s modulus of 5.96 GPa, as well as a flexural strength of 81.8&#xa0;MPa and a flexural modulus of 4.57 GPa, demonstrating significant improvement over pure PETG. The results confirm the feasibility of the proposed print-head concept and highlight its potential for continuous fiber composite printing.</p>

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Design and experimental validation of a modified FFF extruder head with a custom heating element for in-situ printing of continuous fiber-reinforced thermoplastic composites

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2026年8月3日

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  • Nabeel Maqsood,
  • Lukas Razgūnas,
  • Ignotas Gerlikas,
  • Alireza Shahidi,
  • Oleksandr Kapustynskyi,
  • Ruslan Travkin,
  • Genrik Mordas

摘要

This study presents the design, fabrication, and experimental validation of a modified fused filament fabrication (FFF) extruder head for the in-situ printing of continuous fiber-reinforced thermoplastic composites. The proposed system was developed to address major limitations of current continuous-fiber material-extrusion approaches, particularly insufficient fiber impregnation, unstable extrusion, and limited control of the thermal zone near the nozzle. The modified extruder incorporates a dual-input, single-output architecture with separate channels for Polyethylene Terephthalate Glycol (PETG) filament and continuous carbon fiber (CCF), which converge in a custom heated fusion chamber before extrusion through a brass nozzle. Composite specimens were printed in a 0° unidirectional configuration and characterized through scanning electron microscopy, white-light interferometric surface profilometry, tensile testing, flexural testing, and thermal simulation of the extruder design. SEM observations confirmed aligned fibers, localized polymer adhesion, and partial fiber–matrix bonding, although voids and incomplete wetting were also observed. The printed composites exhibited a tensile strength of 213 MPa and a Young’s modulus of 5.96 GPa, as well as a flexural strength of 81.8 MPa and a flexural modulus of 4.57 GPa, demonstrating significant improvement over pure PETG. The results confirm the feasibility of the proposed print-head concept and highlight its potential for continuous fiber composite printing.