Simulation of a Downsized FDM Nozzle

T. M. Hofstaetter [1],
[1] Vienna University of Technology, Vienna, Austria
Published in 2015

This document discusses the simulation of a downsized nozzle for fused deposition modelling (FDM), namely the E3D HotEnd Extruder with manufactured diameters of 200-400 μm in the nozzle tip. The nozzle has been simulated in terms of heat transfer and fluid flowgiving an insight into the physical behavior of the polymer inside the nozzle. The extruder contains a nozzle, a heater block, a heatbreak and a heatsink additionally cooled by a fan. The diameter is located in the sub-mm region allowing to reduce the size and surface roughness of the product. The simulation results were experimentally validated. This kind of simulations is facing multiple problems connected to the description of the material properties with temperature and pressure dependency.