PEEK filament characteristics before and after extrusion within fused filament fabrication process

The heating and extrusion process in fused filament fabrication (FFF) is significantly shorter than the conventional extrusion process where longer heating times and significant pressure are applied. For this reason, it is important to understand whether the crystal history of the feedstock is fully erased through the FFF process and whether the FFF process can be tailored further by engineering the crystallization of the feedstock filaments. In this context, a methodology for evaluating the influence of morphology and mechanical properties on different feedstock and extruded filaments is proposed. Filaments with three different PEEK 450G crystalline structures (standard crystallinity, drawn filament and amorphous filament) were selected and evaluated, before and after free extrusion. The resulting morphology, crystallinity and mechanical properties of the extruded filaments were compared against the feedstock properties. X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), differential and fast scanning calorimetry (DSC/FDSC) and tensile test were the techniques used to evaluate the materials. The results showed clear differences in the properties of the feedstock materials, while the analysis of the extruded filaments points to a homogenization of the resulting material producing mostly similar mechanical properties. However, the use of the drawn filament highlighted a statistically significant improvement in crystallinity and mechanical performance, especially in strain values. This conclusion suggests the innovative possibility of improving the quality of manufactured parts by tailoring the microstructure of the feedstock material used in the FFF process. Graphical abstract