Tensile and thermal properties of low-melt poly aryl ether ketone reinforced with continuous carbon fiber manufactured by robotic 3D printing

Fused filament fabrication (FFF) can 3D print final parts from continuous carbon fiber composites with high structural and thermal performance. This study uses a robotic 3D printer to manufacture tensile specimens from low-melt poly aryl ether ketone (LM PAEK) reinforced with continuous carbon fiber per ASTM D3039-17. A total of 18 tensile specimens are 3D printed to investigate the impact of the nozzle temperature, bed temperature, layer thickness, and the number of layers. Maximum tensile strength and modulus of 1282.1 MPa and 111.9 GPa, respectively, are achieved. These values are, respectively, 32.4% and 79.0% higher than the maximum reported results in the literature for thermoplastic composites made from FFF 3D printing. The build platform temperature of 165 degrees C results in a specimen without cold crystallization as 3D printed with 20.2% degree of crystallinity and a T-g of 154.79 degrees C. A uniform distribution of fibers and minimum voids and gaps are observed in the specimen cross-section.