Applied Surface Science 492 (2019) 765–775

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Applied Surface Science

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Full length article

Modification the surface quality and mechanical properties by laser T

polishing of Al/PLA part manufactured by fused deposition modeling
⁎
Lan Chen, Xinzhou Zhang
a
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang 212013, China
b
Polymer Engineering Center, Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 53706, WI, USA

A R T I C LE I N FO A B S T R A C T

Keywords: Owing to the layer-by-layer deposition characteristic of fused deposition modeling (FDM) process, parts pro-
Fused deposition modeling duced via FDM have typical low surface quality and do not satisfy the requirements for end-use applications.
Laser polishing Therefore, it is necessary to improve the surface quality of parts produced via FDM. In this study, laser polishing
Surface morphology technology was employed to enhance the surface quality of aluminum fiber/polylactide acid (Al/PLA) composite
Mechanical property
parts produced via FDM. The surface roughness, surface morphology, dynamic mechanical properties, and
Fiber reinforced polymer
tensile properties were investigated. With optimal polishing parameters, the laser polishing process removed the
defects formed during the FDM process. The surface roughness was reduced from the initial value of 5.64 μm to
0.32 μm (Ra). The dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) results showed that there was a remarkable improvement
in the storage modulus (E′), loss modulus (E"), and glass transition temperature of Al/PLA composite specimens
after laser polishing. The re-melted and polished surface of the specimens also led to improvement in the tensile
strength and Young's modulus. Lastly, the fracture morphologies were observed, and the possible strengthening
mechanism was also discussed. These results indicate that laser polishing can be an efficient method for the
surface polishing of FDM-printed parts.

1. Introduction the mechanical properties of pure polymers. Also, the functionality of

Fused deposition modeling (FDM) is one of the most widely used
additive manufacturing (AM) technologies for fabrication of pure
thermoplastic parts at low costs [1,2]. As shown in Fig. 1, in the FDM
process, a polymeric filament goes through a heater, where the fila-
ments melt prior to flowing out of the heated nozzle. The nozzle de-
posits extruded filaments onto the hot bed to generate the requisite
object [3–5].
In the past, several materials such as thermoplastic polymer mate-
rials (Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene (ABS), Polylactic Acid (PLA),
Polyamide (PA), and Polycarbonate (PC)) and thermosetting polymer
materials (e.g. epoxy resins) have been used as raw materials for FDM
printing. However, due to lack of required level of strength and func-
tionality, pure polymers are not suitable for many sectors [6–8]. FDM
printing of polymer composites has been introduced to overcome these
limitations. The polymer composites exhibit enhanced structural and
functional properties owing to the addition of reinforcing materials
such as carbon fibers, glass fibers, and metal fibers [9–14]. In the
polymer composites, the matrix material is primarily used to support
the fiber and transfer part of the load to the fiber in order to enhance
various added fibers can be introduced into the composite material.
Although mechanical and functional properties of composites are im-
proved as compared with pure polymers, a major disadvantage of the
FDM process is the high surface roughness due to the deposition of
molten material on top of one another in a layered pattern [15–18]. In
practical applications, poor surface finish can lead to unacceptable
tolerances and affect the functioning of FDM parts.
Many researchers have studied different methods to improve the
surface finish of parts manufactured via FDM. One of the effective
methods to improve surface roughness is the optimization of FDM
process parameters. Several studies have shown that by optimizing
parameters such as building direction, layer thickness, etc., the surface
quality of FDM printed parts of ABS and few other thermoplastic ma-
terials parts can be improved [19–23]. Although surface roughness can
be improved by optimizing the process parameters, it has not been
possible to achieve the acceptable ranges for industrial applications. In
addition, this method has a large negative impact on the economic
costs. Another novel method for reducing surface roughness is post-
processing. Multiple post-processing methods such as vapor smooth-
ening, mechanical polishing, chemical polishing, and bead blasting

⁎
Corresponding author at: Department of Mechanical Engineering, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang 212013, China.
E-mail address: zhangxinzhou1984@126.com (X. Zhang).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apsusc.2019.06.252
Received 2 February 2019; Received in revised form 22 June 2019; Accepted 26 June 2019
Available online 27 June 2019
0169-4332/ © 2019 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
L. Chen and X. Zhang
Fig. 1. Schematic representation of a fused deposition modeling system.
have been investigated to smoothen the surface of FDM polymers. Bo-
schetto et al. [24] employed a barrel finishing method to study the
effect on the surface quality of FDM parts and found that this process
could improve the surface quality; however, it was time-consuming.
Adel et al. [25] impinged a jet of hot air to polish the surface of FDM-
printed parts and found that the surface roughness (Ra) could be re-
duced by 88%. Lalehpour et al. [26] smoothened the ABS surface of
FDM printing with acetone vapor and found a 95% reduction in the
surface roughness. Jin et al. [27] treated the FDM parts separately with
NaOH solution and dichloromethane vapor. They found that the latter
treatment was significantly better, and the surface roughness was de-
creased by 88%. However, these traditional post-processes also have
multiple drawbacks including the inability to handle complex shaped
parts, environmental issues, and high time consumption and cost.
Laser polishing is a novel polishing technology that has more ad-
vantages than the traditional polishing techniques [28,29]. It is a non-
contact polishing process; hence, there is no tool loss. Till now, laser
polishing has been successfully used to improve the surface quality of
parts fabricated from various materials such as glass, diamond, and
various metals [30–32]. Recently, with the development of AM tech-
nology, researchers have started investigating the use of laser polishing
as a post-process to improve the surface quality of AM parts. Lamikiz
et al. [33] used a high-power continuous-wave CO2 laser to polish the
selective laser sintered (SLS) bronze alloy with a roughness of 7.5 μm
and found that the surface roughness could be reduced to < 1.49 μm.
Ma et al. [34] employed a nanosecond pulse laser to reduce the surface
roughness of additive manufactured Ti-based alloys to a level of
Ra < 1 μm. Dadbakhsh et al. [35] investigated the effect of laser pol-
ishing on Inconel-718 parts made via AM and reduced the final surface
roughness by 80% by optimizing the parameters of laser polishing.
Laser polishing has been shown to improve the surface roughness of
specialized AM components. However, only a limited research has been
reported on the use of laser polishing methods to improve the surface
quality of FDM-printed polymer parts.
Heat exchanger is a vital component of cooling vehicle engines and
other systems that require cooling. Most of the heat exchangers em-
ployed are water-cooled heat exchangers. However, recently, air-cooled
heat exchangers have received an increasing attention in the industry
due to the improved performance and shortage of water resource in the
world. Air-cooled heat exchangers are most commonly fabricated with
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Applied Surface Science 492 (2019) 765–775
high thermal conductivity metals such as Al [36]. Low-density and low-
cost Al fibers can be added to PLA to produce economical and func-
tional composites. Al/PLA polymer composites have been widely used
in the manufacturing of air-cooled heat exchangers due to their high
thermal conductivity [37,38]. Additionally, for the application part,
composites have been put their utility in smart civil structures
[14,39,40]. Till date, most studies have focused on developing different
metal-polymer composites and improving their thermal conductivity.
However, there is no comprehensive experimental study on the me-
chanical properties of FDM-printed metal-polymer composite parts.
Although some scholars have used laser polishing to improve the sur-
face quality of PLA and ABS [41,42], they have not studied the effects of
polishing on other properties, such as the mechanical properties. Laser
polishing can improve the strength of parts and reduce the surface
roughness of parts, thus increasing the efficiency of the heat exchanger.
The objective of this study is to investigate the effect of pulsed laser
polishing on the FDM-fabricated Al/PLA composite parts. Various me-
chanical properties such as tensile and dynamic mechanical properties
of FDM-fabricated Al/PLA composite specimens before and after laser
polishing were evaluated via mechanical testing. Optical microscope
(OM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) were also used to ob-
serve the surface morphology and fracture surface of the Al/PLA
composite specimens.
2. Experiment procedure
2.1. Materials and specimen preparation
Al/PLA filament was used as the raw material in this work. The Al/
PLA filament (SainSmart, 8021 Flint Street, Lenexa, Kansas, 66214,
United States) with a diameter of 1.75 mm consisted of 6.95 wt%
chopped aluminum fiber and PLA thermoplastic matrix. The cross-
sectional SEM of Al/PLA filament is shown in Fig. 2(a). The actual mass
fraction of the Al fiber was measured via thermogravimetric analysis
(TGA) (Fig. 2(b)). Approximately 10 mg of the specimen was cut from
the Al/PLA filaments and placed in a Netzsch TG 209 F1 Libra. In a
liquid nitrogen atmosphere, the apparatus was heated to 600 °C at the
heating rate of 50 °C/min and then held at 600 °C for 30 min to ensure a
complete degradation of the PLA matrix, leaving the Al fibers.
The FDM 3D printer (AON3D, 9494 Boul. St. Laurent Suite 600,
Montreal QC, H2N 1P4 Canada) was used to fabricate Al/PLA compo-
site specimens. In order to conduct preliminary experimentation to
choose a good range of values for the factorial experiment and to per-
form surface observations, some coupons (30 mm × 30 mm × 5 mm)
were printed. Tensile test specimens and dynamic mechanical analysis
(DMA) specimens were printed using FDM as per ASTM D638-14
standard and ASTM D5023-15 standard, respectively. The detailed di-
mensions of the tensile and DMA specimens are illustrated in Fig. 3. The
FDM processing parameters were as follows: the nozzle diameter of
0.4 mm, nozzle extrusion temperature of 200 °C for Al/PLA filament,
heated bed temperature of 60 °C, deposition layer thickness of 0.2 mm,
deposition line width of 0.48 mm, and printing speed of 1000 mm/min.
2.2. Laser polishing procedure
A fiber laser (SPI Lasers LLC, 4000 Burton Drive, Santa Clara,
California 95054, USA) with a wavelength of 1070 nm and a power of
200 W was employed. This is a continuous wave fiber laser that can
generate pulses by turning the pump diode on and off. Therefore, the
pulse power is the peak power during the pulse. The process of laser
scanning on FDM composite parts is summarized in Fig. 4(a). When the
laser is irradiated onto the surface of FDM-printed parts, the surface of
the anisotropic composite material melts. After the laser beam leaves,
the surface temperature of the material drops rapidly, causing the
molten pool to solidify. The molten material is usually flattened due to
gravity and surface tension, and the surface roughness is
L. Chen and X. Zhang Applied Surface Science 492 (2019) 765–775

Fig. 2. (a) The cross-sectional SEM images of Al/PLA filament, and (b) TGA Al/PLA filament under nitrogen atmosphere.

correspondingly reduced [35]. 2.3. Material characterization

In order to perform surface topography observations, laser polishing
experiments were performed on 30 mm × 30 mm × 5 mm coupon of
Al/PLA composite specimens, where in four areas of 5 mm × 5 mm
were polished with the specified overlap percentage. Twenty-five ten-
sile specimens and twenty-five DMA specimens were prepared and di-
vided into five groups each. Five specimens were taken as the as-printed
specimens while the other twenty specimens were treated with laser
polishing. Pulsed laser polishing was performed by pulsing the laser at
30 kHz and scanning the laser in a line perpendicular to the FDM de-
position line (see Fig. 4(b)). The laser processing parameters are tabu-
lated in Table 1. Laser polishing was performed on the top surface of all
the specimens and the laser polishing treated specimens are shown in
Fig. 3.
The surface roughness was measured using a focus variation optical
microscope (Alicona Infinite Focus G4). The measurements were made
using a 20× objective with vertical and horizontal resolutions of 5 μm
and 250 nm, respectively. A measurement of a scan area of
2.04 × 1.53 mm2 was performed at ten random positions of each spe-
cimen and the average area surface roughness (Sa) is reported here.
Based on the recommendations of ISO 4288 standard, travel length of
450 μm and cut-off length of 80 μm were used for the 2D surface profile
measurement. Ten measurements were performed both parallel and
vertical to the laser polishing scanning direction, and the arithmetic
average roughness values (Ra) was recorded. Three-dimensional topo-
graphy of the specimen surface was also obtained using a digital mi-
croscope (VHX-6000).

Fig. 3. Fabrication and testing processes.

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Fig. 4. (a) Schematic view of the remelting mechanism, and (b) scanning direction and FDM deposition line direction.

Table 1 ablation were observed, indicating that there was no excessive energy
Laser polishing parameters used in this study. during the laser polishing process. The material flowed along the pol-
Parameters Specimen
ishing direction.
As shown in Fig. 6(a), the roughness was measured in two direc-
Specimen 1 Specimen 2 Specimen 3 Specimen 4 tions, namely parallel and vertical to laser polishing direction, as
(S1) (S2) (S3) (S4) marked by the red arrow. The direction of the FDM deposition line is
marked by the white arrow in Fig. 6(a). For all the specimens, the
Beam diameter 200 150 200 150
(μm) surface roughness in the parallel direction was lower than that in the
Pulse power (W) 4 4 5 5 vertical to the laser polishing direction. A significant reduction in sur-
Pulse frequency 30 30 30 30 face roughness was observed after laser polishing. After laser polishing
(kHz)
the specimen (S1) with 4 W laser power and 200 μm beam diameter, the
Pulse duty cycle 20 20 20 20
(%) minimum surface roughness (parallel to laser polishing direction) was
Line spacing (mm) 0.04 0.04 0.04 0.04 0.32 μm (Ra). Similarly, the minimum surface roughness (vertical to
Scan speed (mm/s) 100 100 100 100 laser polishing direction) for the specimen was lowered to 0.39 μm (Ra)
Spot overlap (%) 50 50 50 50 after laser polishing. The average areal surface roughness Sa of the
specimen was reduced from 7.46 μm down to 0.49, 0.73, 0.91, and
1.18 μm, respectively, with the roughness reduction of 93.4%, 90.2%,
Tensile tests were carried on an Instron 5967 universal testing
87.8%, and 84.2%, respectively. Different laser polishing parameters
machine. As per ASTM D638-14 standard, five samples were tested for
have different effects on the surface quality. The appropriate laser
each condition to obtain reliable tensile results. The crosshead speed
polishing parameters clearly have a great influence on the polishing
was 1 mm/min and the elongation-at-break of specimens was measured
quality. However, other studies have found that inappropriate laser
by the cross-head movement.
parameters can make the surface quality even worse. By quantitative
The dynamic mechanical properties of the Al/PLA specimens were
evaluation of the surface quality, the minimum surface roughness was
measured on a DMA instrument (EPLEXOR®DMA). Dynamic mechan-
recorded at the polishing parameters of laser power P = 4 W and beam
ical properties were characterized by a symmetrical 3-point bending
diameter D = 200 μm.
over a 30 mm span as a function of temperature. The temperature used
in the experiment ranged from 30 to 175 °C and the heating rate was
2 °C/min. The dynamic strain was set to 1% at the frequency of 1 Hz. 3.2. Surface morphology
Surface morphologies and fracture surfaces of 3D printed Al/PLA
specimens were observed using a LEO DSM 1530 field emission scan- In order to better observe the surface morphology after laser pol-
ning electron microscope (FE-SEM) at an acceleration voltage of 3 kV. ishing, the surface SEM micrographs of unpolished and post-processed
Prior to imaging, all the specimens were sputtered with gold. Al/PLA specimens are presented in Figs. 7 and 8, respectively. As shown
in Fig. 7, the surface of the Al/PLA specimen exhibited a rough ap-
3. Results and discussion pearance before polishing and several peaks and valleys existed. As
shown in Fig. 7(a), some gaps were visible between the two filaments
3.1. 3D topography and surface roughness which would affect the adhesion between them. Many voids appeared
in different places on the FDM Al/PLA surface (Fig. 7(b)). These voids
Fig. 5(a) and (b) present the three-dimensional (3D) topography of were primarily caused by nozzle clogging during printing and vibration
the Al/PLA specimens before and after laser polishing (S1). As shown in of the extrusion system. In addition, discontinuous filaments occurred
Fig. 5(b), surface roughness was reduced after laser polishing. A on the surface of Al/PLA due to some errors between the actual feed
smoother surface was formed and no signs of melting, burning, or rate and the preset rate during the printing process, resulting in a

Fig. 5. 3D topography of the specimen before and after the laser polishing: (a) unpolished, and (b) S1: 4 W laser power, 200 μm beam diameter.

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Fig. 6. (a) OM image of unpolished surface, (b) acquired profile for unpolished surface (vertical to laser polishing direction), (c) acquired profile for unpolished
surface (parallel to laser polishing direction), (d) surface roughness for all specimens, (e) acquired profiles for polished surface (RaeP, parallel to laser polishing
direction; RaeV, vertical to laser polishing direction).

reduction of the extruded material [43]. In absence of the laser pol-
ishing process, the surface of the FDM printed specimen was visibly
rough and defective.
As shown in Fig. 8, the rough FDM Al/PLA surface was perfectly
polished and laser polishing tracks appeared on the surface of Al/PLA.
Due to the removal function of the polishing process, a smooth surface
was obtained, and no significant debris was left on the surface. By
comparing Fig. 8(a)–(d), it can be concluded that the laser polishing
process parameters have a certain influence on the surface morphology.
The laser polishing power had a significant effect on the surface mor-
phology, while the effect of the laser beam diameter was less pro-
nounced. When the laser energy was too high, some small porosities
were present on the surface due to laser sintering of specimens.
In pulse wave polishing, the energy density (ED) for the experiments
is estimated based on Eq. (1).

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Fig. 7. SEM micrographs showing the surface morphologies of FDM Al/PLA specimen: (a) gap, (b) void, and (c) discontinuous filament.

DC P polishing. The laser-polished specimen (S1) demonstrated the highest

ED = . π 2
f 4
D (1) storage modulus, indicating that the optimized laser polishing para-
meters were beneficial to increase the bond between the Al fibers and
where P is the pulse power (W), D is the beam diameter (mm), DC is the PLA matrix. Laser polishing has proven to be a promising method to
pulse duty cycle (%) and f is the pulse frequency (kHz). The result is the decrease porosity and increase the density of AM parts to almost 100%
effective energy density (J/mm2). The quality of the polished surface [33]. After laser polishing of Al/PLA, the porosity and bulk defects
was better as the laser energy density increased within a certain range. decreased and the interfacial adhesion of the Al fiber and PLA matrix
The excessive energy density can also lead to a poor surface quality. improved, resulting in an increase in the polymer chain anchorage on
the fibers. As the temperature increased, all the specimens showed a
gradual decrease in the storage modulus value. The molecular mobility
3.3. Dynamic mechanical properties
increased as the temperature exceeded the glass transition temperature
(Tg). In the rubbery region, the specimen with laser polishing had a
DMA has been widely used to study the viscoelastic properties of
higher value of E′ due to a decrease in porosity and bulk defects.
composite materials. The temperature-dependent dynamic mechanical
The loss modulus of all the Al/PLA composite specimens is pre-
properties of FDM products are critical as it means that the function-
sented in Fig. 9(b). At the temperatures below 60 °C, the laser-polished
ality of parts can vary significantly over a wide temperature range.
specimens showed higher loss modulus than the unpolished ones.
Fig. 9 shows the storage modulus (E′), loss modulus (E"), and loss
Owing to plasticization caused by laser polishing, the loss modulus of
tangent (tanδ) of all the Al/PLA composite specimens.
laser polished Al/PLA composite specimens was remarkably higher
The storage modulus describes an approximation of the tempera-
than that of the unpolished ones. The higher loss modulus indicates a
ture-dependent load-bearing capacity, stiffness characteristics, and de-
higher viscosity; hence, laser polishing is an effective plasticizer of Al/
formation resistance of the material [44]. Three typical regions, namely
PLA.
glassy, transition and rubbery, are shown in Fig. 9(a). In the glassy
Loss tangent is the ratio of loss modulus and storage modulus and
region, a remarkable increase in the storage modulus (E′) of the laser
represents the material damping factor. As is well-known, the damping
polished Al/PLA composites could be achieved, indicating that the
factor is extremely influenced by the mechanical strength of the
adhesion between the Al fiber and PLA matrix was improved after laser

Fig. 8. SEM micrographs showing the surface morphologies of FDM Al/PLA specimens after laser polishing for (a) S1: 4 W laser power, 200 μm beam diameter, (b)
S2: 4 W laser power, 150 μm beam diameter, (c) S3: 5 W laser power, 200 μm beam diameter, and (d) S4: 5 W laser power, 150 μm beam diameter, respectively.

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L. Chen and X. Zhang Applied Surface Science 492 (2019) 765–775

Fig. 9. Dynamic mechanical thermograms of all 3D-printed Al/PLA composite specimens: (a) storage modulus (E′), (b) loss modulus (E"), and (c) loss tangent (tanδ),
respectively.

material. The presence of Al fibers in the polymer structure has a large

effect on the damping response of the composites. The reason for the
phenomenon is that the interfacial adhesion between the Al fiber and
the PLA matrix affects the mobility of the molecular chains. The mo-
bility of the molecular chain determines the material from a rigid state
to an elastic state, thereby affecting the damping factor. The composites
with poor interfacial adhesion need to dissipate more energy and ex-
hibit higher damping peaks as compared to the materials with strong
bonding interface. As shown in Fig. 9(c), tanδ of unpolished Al/PLA was
stable at low temperatures and peaked at 70 °C. At high temperatures,
the molecular motion was extremely active because the adhesion be-
tween the Al fiber and the PLA matrix was poor. Moreover, the
unpolished Al/PLA composite specimen had the highest value of tanδ,
which pointed to a high damping response. The Al/PLA composite
specimen (S1) after laser polishing had the lowest tanδ. As the inter-
facial adhesion between the Al fibers and the PLA matrix was enhanced
after laser polishing, the mobility of the molecules was reduced and the
stiffness of the material was improved, suggesting a good load-bearing Fig. 10. Tensile stress-strain curves of Al/PLA composite specimens.
capacity. Tg of the laser polished specimen moved to a higher tem-
perature, indicating that the polished specimens had better thermal
modulus, and elongation-at-break of all the specimens are summarized
stability than the unpolished ones [45].
in Fig. 11. The laser polishing resulted in a significant increase in tensile
strength and Young's modulus of Al/PLA as compared with those for the
3.4. Tensile properties unpolished specimens. For instance, via comparison of unpolished Al/
PLA and laser polished Al/PLA specimen (S2) in Fig. 11, although the
Fig. 10 shows the tensile strain-stress curves for all the specimens elongation-at-break decreased from 60.6% to 33.2%, the tensile
with different laser treatments. The initial stress and strain had a linear strength improved from 41.01 MPa to 50.47 MPa. Similar to the tensile
relationship. After reaching a certain yield limit, the stress remained strength, Young's modulus was also significantly increased in the laser
unchanged as the strain continued to increase. When the maximum polished S2 (from 776.5 MPa to 1010.7 MPa). The tensile strength and
strain was reached, the samples suddenly broke, indicating that Al/PLA Young's modulus values of all the laser-polished specimens were higher
fracture is a typical ductile fracture. than those of the unpolished ones, with laser-polished Al/PLA specimen
The effect of laser polishing on the tensile strength, Young's (S1) showing the highest value. Thus, in conclusion, with proper laser

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L. Chen and X. Zhang
Fig. 11. Statistical histograms of the mechanical results of (a) tensile strength and Young's modulus, and (b) elongation-at-break for Al/PLA composite specimens.
polishing parameters, Al/PLA composite specimens demonstrate im-
proved mechanical performance. This trend could be explained by the
theory that the porosity of the treated Al/PLA composites was de-
creased, and interfacial adhesion of Al fiber and PLA matrix was im-
proved. As shown in Fig. 11(b), after laser polishing, the elongation-at-
break decreased by 31.6, 33.2, 50.9, and 53.1% for specimens S1, S2,
S3, and S4, respectively. The decrease is expected because laser pol-
ishing treatment improves the rigidity and decreases the ductility of the
Al/PLA specimens.
3.5. Observation of the fracture surface
To better understand the tensile test results, the SEM micrographs of
fractured surfaces of unpolished Al/PLA tensile test specimens are
displayed in Fig. 12. With the addition of metal fibers, the fractured
surface showed a typical ductile, rough surface topography. A trian-
gular shaped void marked by a yellow arrow could be seen in Fig. 12(a),
which was a physical gap caused by the unfilled material during the
Fig. 12. Typical SEM images of fracture surface from failed FDM Al/PLA specimen without laser polishing.
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Applied Surface Science 492 (2019) 765–775
fuse extrusion. As shown in Fig. 12(a), several white sheet-like Al fibers
were distributed in the PLA matrix. In addition, some voids having the
same shape as the Al fibers could be observed. These voids were due to
the Al fibers being pulled out during the tensile fracture. As the Al fibers
had different elasticity as compared to the PLA matrix, the interfacial
adhesion between the PLA and the Al fiber was not strong enough.
When stress during the tensile test was higher than the bond strength at
the interface, the Al fiber de-bonded to form a void. In addition, after
the tensile tests, the unpolished specimen showed severe filament de-
lamination (Fig. 12(b)). De-bonding was also evident (Fig. 12(c)), in-
dicating weaker adhesion between the two adjacent layers. Some small
porosities were observed in Fig. 12(d), and it was clear that these
porosities were not caused due to fiber pull-out. Such porosities have
also been reported in other literature works and are referred to as gas
porosity [46,47]. The formation of the gas porosity could be due to the
shrinkage of the specimen from the molten to the solid state during the
FDM printing process.
Since the tensile strength of the specimen S1 is most significantly
L. Chen and X. Zhang
Fig. 13. Typical SEM images of fracture surface from failed FDM Al/PLA specimen after laser polishing (S1).
improved after polishing, the tensile fracture morphology of the S1 is
also shown in Fig. 13. Fiber breakage was found in the fractured surface
of laser-polished Al/PLA composites instead of pulling out (Fig. 13(a)),
indicating a stronger interfacial adhesion and better stress transfer be-
tween the Al fiber and the PLA matrix. However, still, there were a
small number of voids left after the fibers were pulled out (Fig. 13(d)),
and the fiber pull-out was negligible as compared to a large amount of
fiber breakage. There are also some triangular shaped voids in the
fractured surface of S1 (Fig. 13(b)). After laser polishing, the adhesion
between the two adjacent layers could be improved. Both material
delamination and de-bonding adjacent layers were reduced (Fig. 13(c)).
As the laser was radiated on the outer surface of the specimen, the
surface and subsurface layers of the specimen got softened. Due to the
removal properties caused by laser remelting, the gas porosity de-
creased, and the surface and subsurface layers became denser. These
results are also supported by SEM microscopy (Fig. 13(d)).
3.6. Strengthening mechanism induced by laser polishing
The tensile failure mechanism of the specimen is presented in
Fig. 14. In the FDM process, the molten material forms a three-
Fig. 14. Illustration of tensile fracture mechanism of additively manufactured Al/PLA composite specimen.
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Applied Surface Science 492 (2019) 765–775
dimensional object by the deposition of the layers. Therefore, the parts
produced by FDM are bonded together with multiple layers rather than
the overall structure processed by injection molding. Several defects are
prone to occur during FDM process. Different categories of specimen
defects are illustrated in Fig. 14. Defect Type 1, the gas porosity is due
to the temperature gradient formed by the rapid cooling of the de-
posited material during FDM process, resulting in the specimen
shrinkage (Fig. 12). Defect type 2, the physical gap is related to the
nozzle diameter, shape, printing speed, arrangement of fuses, etc.
(Fig. 12). Defect type 3, material delamination is primarily caused by
the loss of material due to the inconsistency between the actual feed
rate and the preset rate during the excursion of raw filaments. Defect
type 4, lower adhesion is a defect inherent in the FDM process. This
may be due to the lack of certain pressure, larger layer thickness, etc.
during the FDM process. These defects represent the weakest points in
the parts manufactured via FDM. Under external loads, these defects
become the origin of the damage. The pulled-out fibers and de-bonding
between the two adjacent layers are more likely to occur in the FDM-
produced parts. The similar strengthening mechanism was reported by
Gob et al. [9] in the tensile test for carbon fiber and glass fiber re-
inforced thermoplastics.
L. Chen and X. Zhang
When a laser with a certain energy is irradiated on the Al/PLA
specimen, the surface of the specimen becomes molten and polymer
chains break down under the action of the remelting mechanism. The
surface material flows from peak to unfilled valleys causing many de-
fects to be removed. After laser beam is removed, materials re-bond
together after cooling to form a much denser structure. The surface
quality of the outer surface layer of parts is vital. The healing effect
further improves the mechanical properties of the processed parts such
as the tensile strength and dynamic mechanical properties.
4. Conclusion
In this study, laser polishing was employed to improve the surface
quality of FDM Al/PLA composite specimens. The modification in the
surface morphology, surface roughness, dynamic mechanical proper-
ties, and tensile properties was studied. The fracture morphology and
strengthening mechanism were also investigated. The main conclusions
are as follows:
After laser polishing with the optimal parameters, the surface
roughness of FDM Al/PLA composite specimens was greatly reduced
from 5.64 μm to 0.32 μm (Ra). Several defects such as gaps and voids
were completely detached after laser polishing and a smoother surface
was obtained.
Al/PLA composite specimens treated with laser polishing had a
higher storage modulus and lower loss tangent. These findings suggest
that the laser polishing process could decrease the porosity inside the
FDM parts and improve interfacial adhesion between the Al fibers and
PLA matrix.
An improvement in the tensile strength was observed after laser
polishing treatment; however, the elongation at break was also slightly
reduced. After laser polishing, the tensile strength and Young's modulus
of the Al/PLA specimens increased from 41.01 MPa and 776.5 MPa to
54.88 MPa and 1078.4 MPa, respectively.
Different categories of defects fabricated via FDM caused the Al/
PLA to fracture. After laser polishing, the surface of the specimen be-
came molten and the polymer chains broke down under the action of
remelting mechanism. The surface material flowed from peak to un-
filled valleys, causing some defects to be removed. After laser beam was
removed, the materials re-bonded together after cooling to form a much
denser structure.
Acknowledgements
The authors are grateful to the projects supported by the Jiangsu
Overseas Visiting Scholar Program for University Prominent Young &
Middle-aged Teachers and Presidents, the Natural Science in Colleges of
Jiangsu Province of China (Grant No. 15KJB460005), Jiangsu Planned
Projects for Postdoctoral Research Funds (Grant No. 1501102C),
Advanced Talents Foundation of Jiangsu University of China (Grant No.
14JDG138).
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