A review of melt extrusion additive manufacturing processes: I. Process design and modeling

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to systematically and critically review the literature related to process design and modeling of fused deposition modeling (FDM) and similar extrusion-based additive manufacturing (AM) or rapid prototyping processes. Design/methodology/approach – A systematic review of the literature focusing on process design and mathematical process modeling was carried out. Findings – FDM and similar processes are among the most widely used rapid prototyping processes with growing application in finished part manufacturing. Key elements of the typical processes, including the material feed mechanism, liquefier and print nozzle; the build surface and environment; and approaches to part…