Implications of Crystallization on the Performance of Polyphenylene Sulfide with Material Extrusion Additive Manufacturing

Among the additive manufacturing (AM) techniques available, material extrusion additive manufacturing (MEAM) has been widely researched due to its increased availability and relatively simple manufacturing method. This AM method has generally been limited to amorphous polymeric materials as feedstocks, but more recent research has investigated high performance semicrystalline polymers as potential feedstocks with varying levels of success. In this work, we have used two techniques to evaluate how the crystallization of a promising feedstock, polyphenylene sulfide (PPS), affects its use with MEAM. We have used fast scanning calorimetry (FSC) to more fully understand how the crystallization of PPS is affected by cooling rates relevant to MEAM. Additionally, we have used the Taguchi method to analyze the mechanical properties of printed parts when exposed to post-processing heat treatment steps. Overall, the results showed that PPS can be used effectively with MEAM and that its crystallization kinetics provide unique benefits to its processing with MEAM.