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How fused deposition modeling works
- Feed filament: Thermoplastic filament is supplied to the printer’s extrusion system.
- Heat and extrude: The printer heats the material and pushes it through a nozzle.
- Build in layers: The nozzle follows a planned path, depositing material layer by layer.
- Let the part solidify: Deposited material cools and solidifies into the finished shape.
Because FDM adds material to build an object, it is an additive-manufacturing process. That distinguishes it in principle from subtractive machining, which makes a part by removing material. Stratasys, a 3D-printing manufacturer, describes FDM as creating objects by extruding melted thermoplastic filament through a heated nozzle in its FDM process overview.
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What “material extrusion” means
ISO/ASTM 52900:2021, Additive manufacturing — General principles — Fundamentals and vocabulary, defines the broad terminology used for additive manufacturing. Its preview defines material extrusion as an additive-manufacturing process in which material is selectively dispensed through a nozzle or orifice. FDM is the familiar filament-based process name for this kind of printing.
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The ISO catalog says the 2021 edition was reviewed and confirmed in 2025, and lists it as current. See the ISO/ASTM 52900:2021 catalog entry and standard preview, including the material-extrusion definition.
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What an FDM printer needs
The basic setup is a printer with an extrusion system and thermoplastic filament that the machine supports. Filament is the feedstock; the printer heats and deposits it to form the part. Compatibility is not universal: check the printer’s documentation for supported materials and filament requirements rather than assuming any spool will work.
FDM describes a process, not a guaranteed result. The available process descriptions do not establish universal temperatures, speeds, layer heights, surface finishes, or strength values; such settings and outcomes depend on the particular machine, material, and job. ANSI’s overview of additive-manufacturing standards describes standards coverage across areas such as material selection, process quality control, post-processing, testing, and finished-material properties. It is general additive-manufacturing context, not a list of requirements that applies identically to every FDM printer.
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- Supported Filament: Ideal: PLA, PETG, TPU, PVA, PET ABS, ASA; Capable : PA, PC; Not Recommended: Carbon/Glass Fiber Reinforced Polymer.
In brief: what the term tells you
- Feedstock: thermoplastic filament.
- Mechanism: the printer heats and extrudes the filament through a nozzle.
- Build method: material is deposited in successive layers and then cools and solidifies.
- Standardized category: material extrusion.
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