Effects of Particle Size and Solid Loading on Stereolithography for Preparation of Diamond-Based Composites

Abstract

Abstract 3D printing is a revolutionary technology that can easily produce complex shapes with low cost and high efficiency. In recent years, technologies for 3D printing have been developed rapidly for polymers, metals, ceramics, and composite materials. Due to its advantages in configuration, 3D printing has also been expected to be a powerful method for preparing diamond-based composites and promoting the applications of diamonds as well. In this paper, stereolithography printing technology is employed to prepare diamond-based composites with special attention to slurry preparation and its stereolithography performance. The impact of diamond particle size, solid loading, and exposure time on the photocuring performance of the diamond slurry are investigated systematically. In addition, the correlation between the thermal conductivity of the printed materials with particle size and solid loading is also studied. The highest thermal conductivity in this study is 1.32 W/(m·K), achieved with an average particle size of 15 μm and a solid loading of 75 wt%. The results show the great potential of preparing diamond-based composites by 3D printing and provide theoretical and technical guidance for further research.