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Enhancing nanomaterial dispersion and performance of parts printed via FFF by a solution casting method

  • Polymers for Additive Manufacturing Research Letter
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Abstract

Nanocomposites represent an important way to expand the boundaries of material-property space. To advance their use in printing by fused filament fabrication (FFF), we develop a method based on colloidal solution mixing to improve dispersion of various nanofiller additives in printed parts. Printed nanocomposites exhibit increases in Young’s modulus of up to 41%, decreases in part-to-part variation, and the ability to reach higher nanofiller loading levels. Optical microscopy shows a reduction in nanofiller aggregates in parts created using this solution casting method. Improvements in printability, quality, and performance of FFF-printed parts may accelerate the utility of nanocomposites in FFF.

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Acknowledgments

The authors acknowledge financial support of this work from The Department of Energy’s Kansas City National Security Campus, which is operated and managed by Honeywell Federal Manufacturing & Technologies, LLC, under Contract DE-NA-0002839. The authors also thank Dr. Gila Stein for access to optical microscopy instrumentation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Chemistry, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN, 37996, USA

    William K. Ledford, Sina Sabury & S. Michael Kilbey II

  2. Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN, 37996, USA

    S. Michael Kilbey II

Authors
  1. William K. Ledford
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  2. Sina Sabury
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  3. S. Michael Kilbey II
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Correspondence to S. Michael Kilbey II.

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Ledford, W.K., Sabury, S. & Kilbey, S.M. Enhancing nanomaterial dispersion and performance of parts printed via FFF by a solution casting method. MRS Communications 11, 122–128 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1557/s43579-020-00008-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1557/s43579-020-00008-6

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