DESIGN OF MINITURE POLYMER GRANULE EXTRUDER

Abstract

The purpose of this project is to design and produce a miniature polymer granule extruder that can 3D print just like a filament 3D printer with the same rate and quality. This project went through three different stages. The first stage involved researching similar projects and different design ideas for the extruder. The second stage consisted of designing a miniature polymer granule extruder using CAD software, in particular SolidWorks, and then testing the design on a SolidWorks simulation before producing the extruder. During the final stage, the practical stage, a prototype of the extruder was produced and then attached to the 3D desktop printer to run tests on two materials: sugar and high-density polyethylene (HDPE). A successful miniature polymer granule should work as well as a filament 3D printer.