A Review of the Tribology of 3D-Printed Polymers and Polymer Composites
- 1Department of Machine Elements and Tribology, National University of Science and Technology Politehnica Bucharest, 060042 Bucharest, Romania
Abstract
3D-printed polymers and polymer composites are increasingly used in sliding and abrasive contacts, but their friction and wear cannot be transferred directly from data for moulded polymers, because printing creates layered interfaces, process-specific surface textures and position-dependent crystallinity. This systematised critical review analyses 289 experimental studies and grades the evidence for each step linking the printing process to internal structure, surface, contact conditions, wear mechanisms and component life. Four findings stand out. First, the orientation of layers and rasters relative to sliding is associated with a switch between wear controlled by shear of interlayer bonds and wear controlled by crossing of surface ridges; coding orientation as {contact face, layer normal, raster/fibre direction} explains several apparently contradictory results. Second, test conditions dominate absolute wear rates, which for printed neat PEEK span 2.6 decades, with the largest contrast between contact configurations, so effects must be compared within studies. Third, only 3 of 245 full-text studies report all core contact and statistical information; a minimum reporting set is proposed. Fourth, only three printed-versus-conventional comparisons isolate the manufacturing route. Established findings include the failure of hardness as a general wear predictor and friction reduction by oil and grease; lubricant storage in designed porosity remains probable.
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BibTeX
@article{calin2026review,
title = {{A Review of the Tribology of 3D-Printed Polymers and Polymer Composites}},
author = {Andrei Călin and Georgiana Ionela Păduraru and Delia Alexandra Prisecaru and Lucian Cucu and Marilena Stoica},
journal = {Polymers},
year = {2026},
month = nov,
doi = {10.3390/polym18212747},
url = {https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4360/18/21/2747},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - A Review of the Tribology of 3D-Printed Polymers and Polymer Composites
AU - Andrei Călin
AU - Georgiana Ionela Păduraru
AU - Delia Alexandra Prisecaru
AU - Lucian Cucu
AU - Marilena Stoica
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/11/04
JO - Polymers
DO - 10.3390/polym18212747
UR - https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4360/18/21/2747
AB - 3D-printed polymers and polymer composites are increasingly used in sliding and abrasive contacts, but their friction and wear cannot be transferred directly from data for moulded polymers, because printing creates layered interfaces, process-specific surface textures and position-dependent crystallinity. This systematised critical review analyses 289 experimental studies and grades the evidence for each step linking the printing process to internal structure, surface, contact conditions, wear mechanisms and component life. Four findings stand out. First, the orientation of layers and rasters relative to sliding is associated with a switch between wear controlled by shear of interlayer bonds and wear controlled by crossing of surface ridges; coding orientation as {contact face, layer normal, raster/fibre direction} explains several apparently contradictory results. Second, test conditions dominate absolute wear rates, which for printed neat PEEK span 2.6 decades, with the largest contrast between contact configurations, so effects must be compared within studies. Third, only 3 of 245 full-text studies report all core contact and statistical information; a minimum reporting set is proposed. Fourth, only three printed-versus-conventional comparisons isolate the manufacturing route. Established findings include the failure of hardness as a general wear predictor and friction reduction by oil and grease; lubricant storage in designed porosity remains probable.
SN - 2073-4360
ER -