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Additive Manufacturing Technology of Polymer-Based Composites

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Dear Colleagues,

Additive manufacturing (AM), or 3D printing, has revolutionized the fabrication of polymer-based composites, enabling unprecedented design freedom, customization, and multifunctionality. This Special Issue focuses on recent advances in AM technologies for polymer composites, emphasizing innovative materials, processing techniques, and emerging applications.

We invite contributions exploring cutting-edge developments in the following areas:

Advanced 3D/4D printing techniques for smart materials and responsive structures;
Sustainable composites and recycling strategies to enhance circularity in AM;
Covalent adaptable networks (CANs) for reprocessable and self-healing composites;
Nanocomposites with enhanced mechanical, electrical, or thermal properties;
Energy storage and thermal management applications, including printed batteries and heat exchangers;
Metamaterials with tailored mechanical, acoustic, or electromagnetic properties;
Smart saterials and multifunctionality, integrating sensing, actuation, or adaptive behaviours.

This Special Issue aims to bridge the gap between material innovation and additive manufacturing, fostering interdisciplinary research for next-generation polymer composites. We welcome original research articles, reviews, and perspectives that highlight novel advancements in this rapidly evolving field.

Dr. Alfonso Martone
Guest Editor

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29 pages, 14725 KB

Open AccessArticle

Investigation of Polymer Adhesion of Materials in Multimaterial FFF Process

by Bálint Leon Seregi, Peter Ficzere and Gabriella Zsoldos

Polymers 2026, 18(7), 805; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym18070805 - 26 Mar 2026

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 971

Abstract

The increasing availability of multi-material fused filament fabrication (FFF) systems has intensified the need for a systematic understanding of interfacial adhesion between model and support polymers. In this study, the adhesion behavior of commonly used engineering thermoplastics and dedicated support materials was investigated in the context of multimaterial FFF. A comprehensive experimental methodology was developed, including a custom tensile test specimen and fixture specifically designed to quantify interfacial adhesion under controlled conditions. Material combinations based on ABS, ASA, PETG, and carbon-fiber-reinforced PA (PAHT-CF), together with manufacturer-recommended and alternative support materials, were evaluated using uniaxial tensile testing and fracture surface analysis. The results demonstrate that interfacial adhesion strongly depends on material compatibility and processing conditions, and that dedicated support materials generally provide lower adhesion than model–model combinations. However, significant deviations were observed: SUPP PA exhibited unexpectedly high adhesion when paired with PAHT-CF, while SUPP ABS proved to be a more versatile support across multiple model materials, offering a favorable balance between sufficient adhesion during printing and ease of removal. Several material pairs showed negligible adhesion, leading to separation during manufacturing and limiting their practical applicability. Microscopic analysis revealed the coexistence of diffusion-driven bonding, mechanical interlocking, and weak boundary layer effects. The findings highlight that optimal support performance requires neither minimal nor excessive adhesion, and provide experimentally validated guidance for selecting material combinations and process windows in multimaterial FFF. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Additive Manufacturing Technology of Polymer-Based Composites)

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33 pages, 7817 KB

Open AccessArticle

Compressive Response and Energy Absorption of Additively Manufactured Elastomers with Varied Simple Cubic Architectures

by Lindsey B. Bezek, Sushan Nakarmi, Jeffery A. Leiding, Nitin P. Daphalapurkar, Santosh Adhikari and Kwan-Soo Lee

Polymers 2026, 18(3), 420; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym18030420 - 5 Feb 2026

Viewed by 897

Abstract

Additive manufacturing, and particularly the vat photopolymerization process, enables the fabrication of complex geometries at high resolution and small length scales, making it well-suited for fabricating cellular structures (e.g., foams and lattices). Among these, elastomeric cellular structures are of growing interest due to their tunable compliance and energy dissipation. However, comprehensive data on the compressive behavior of these structures remains limited, especially for investigating the structure-property effects from changing the density and distribution of material within the cellular structure. This study explores how the mechanical response of polyurethane-based simple cubic structures changes when varying volume fraction, unit cell length, and unit cell patterning, which have not been systematically investigated previously in additively manufactured elastomers. Increasing volume fraction from 10% to 50% yielded significant changes in compressive stress–strain performance (decreasing strain at 0.5 MPa by 41.6% and increasing energy absorption density by 3962.5%). Although changing the unit cell length between 2.5 and 7 mm in ~30 mm parts did not result in statistically different stress–strain responses, modifying the configuration of struts of different thicknesses across designs with 30% volume fraction altered the stress–strain behavior (differences of 12.5% in strain at 0.5 MPa and 109.4% for energy absorption density). Power law relationships were developed to understand the interactions between volume fraction, unit cell length, and elastic modulus, and experimental data showed strong fits (R² > 0.91). These findings enhance the understanding of how multiple structural design aspects influence the performance of elastomeric cellular materials, providing a foundation for informing strategic design of tailorable materials for diverse mechanical applications. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Additive Manufacturing Technology of Polymer-Based Composites)

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