The Effect of Nozzle Diameter on the Dimensional Accuracy of FDM-Printed Dental Models

Abstract

Additive manufacturing has become an integral component of the digital workflow in dentistry. Among available technologies, fused deposition modeling (FDM) offers a cost-effective alternative for producing dental models, although concerns remain regarding dimensional accuracy. The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of nozzle diameter and dental arch morphology on the dimensional accuracy of FDM-printed dental models. Reference STL datasets representing ideal maxillary and mandibular arches were printed using a Bambu Lab X1 Carbon printer with two nozzle diameters (0.2 mm and 0.4 mm) in a 2 × 2 factorial design (n = 40). Dimensional accuracy was assessed using Root Mean Square (RMS) deviation obtained through 3D surface comparison. Models printed with the 0.2 mm nozzle demonstrated significantly lower RMS deviations compared with those printed using the 0.4 mm nozzle. Additionally, mandibular models exhibited higher dimensional stability than maxillary models. These findings indicate that smaller nozzle diameters can improve the accuracy of FDM-printed dental models.