Feasibility Study of Plating FDM Material for Printing Circuits

The process of creating objects using 3D printing is highly popular nowadays, as it allows for the freedom to shape objects with great precision and low costs. We see the potential for creating electrical circuits and electronic devices through 3D printing using the FDM printing technique with Polylactic Acid (PLA) Filament ink. This printing technique has low production costs. For using it to create electrical circuits, surface preparation involves smoothing the surface through polishing, followed by a gold metal plating process. This allows the surface of the object to conduct electricity comparable to gold. This can generate surfaces suitable for producing electrical circuits and electronic devices. For the plating process, researchers employ two methods: An electroplating pen and an immersion plating by submerging while applying electricity. The results of the plating process revealed electrical conductivity values of 2,649±127S/cm for electroplating and 11,447±241S/cm for immersion plating, respectively. The electrical conductivity values, when compared to the electrical conductivity value of gold at 63,935 S/cm, it was found that the electrical conductivity value is significantly lower. In summary, there is potential for creating electrical circuits and electronic devices that operate within a range of lower electrical conductivity than gold. There is also potential for further development to increase the electrical conductivity by changing the printing ink to a conductive type and adjusting the gold plating process.