The Influence of Nanoparticle Dispersions on Mechanical and Thermal Properties of Polymer Nanocomposites Using SLA 3D Printing

Abstract

The synergistic integration of nanocomposites and 3D printing has opened a gateway to the future and is soon expected to surpass its rivalry with traditional manufacturing techniques. However, there is always a challenge associated with preparing a nanocomposite resin for polymerization-based 3D printing, which is the agglomeration of nanoparticles. Due to the high surface-area-to-volume ratio, the nanoparticles form clusters in the composite matrix, which affects the final properties. This paper aims to analyze the effects of graphene oxide (GO) dispersion on the mechanical and thermal properties of 3D-printed nanocomposites. In particular, a well-dispersed sonication dispersion route is employed for analyzing high and poor GO dispersions and their effects on different properties. After different microscopic analyses and testing, the optimum sonication condition was 30 min at an amplitude of 70%. In terms of mechanical properties, both tensile and compression strength first increased and then decreased gradually with different dispersions as well as varying GO concentrations. Furthermore, there was less or no effect on thermal stability. GO of 0.05 wt.% had the highest compression and tensile strength, while beyond 0.05 to 0.5 wt.%, both strengths reduced slowly. These 3D-printed nanocomposites have found their application in automotive, sports, and biomedical fields.