Otimização topológica com filtro de estrutura de suporte para manufatura aditiva

Abstract

Topological optimization stands out as an important technique for project analysis and design, seeking to maximize structural performance through efficient material distribution, considering the boundary conditions and constraints of the problem. However, manufacturing these structures using traditional methods is not always feasible due to the complex and unconventional geometry configuration. In this way, additive manufacturing (AM) emerges as an innovative solution, allowing the production of objects layer by layer without the need for molds. However, projection angles greater than 45º in the geometry may require support material to avoid failures and deformations during printing, increasing material costs and manufacturing time. Thus, this study aims to evaluate the use of topological optimization in conjunction with the support structure filter for additive manufacturing, highlighting potential benefits in terms of material savings and production time. In this context, the AMfilter, developed by Langelaar (2016), is used together with the educational 88-line code developed by Andreassen et al. (2010), whose performance is verified through print simulations of the optimized models. The AMfilter seeks to eliminate the need for support structures based on geometric constraints, removing overhanging surfaces that exceed the maximum allowed angle, making the resulting geometry directly printable without support structures. The results indicate some limitations of the AMfilter, such as mesh dependency and the gradual increase of intermediate density in the printing direction. Furthermore, the solutions resulting from the topological optimization combined with the AMfilter did not completely eliminate the support structures. Despite the modifications of the topologies concerning the reference model, these were not sufficient to achieve the expected result. However, a reduction in the estimated time for support printing and consequently in material consumption compared to the reference model is observed. This reduction was less significant in simulations with a 45º angle for support generation, but in simulations with higher angles of 53º and 60º, it reached an average reduction of 25% and 37%, respectively, among the discussed examples.