One of the problems with using very small nozzles is that the pressure required to push the plastic through the nozzle becomes too high. On that note I'm wondering if anyone has experimented with using ultrasonic vibration in an attempt to lower the required pressure?

See Investigations on the effects of ultrasonic vibrations in the extrusion process and this commercial vendor. I've only read the summary of the paper, but there are other references on the web that indicate that ultrasonic assisted extrusion is not uncommon.

So, has anyone played with this idea or know why it would be pointless to experiment with? Assuming there is any benefit the first problem I foresee is keeping the extrusion head components from vibrating loose.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/28/2010 04:54PM by madscifi.

Sounds like an interesting idea!
You would defiantly need to lock-tite all your nuts and bolts, and maybe isolate the extruder from the carriage with rubber or springs.

you can also use vibration to deposit powders. If someone sells powdered solder, this would be useful for printing circuit boards, as you can just melt the solder later using the Hot-plate reflow technique.