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A special issue of Polymers (ISSN 2073-4360). This special issue belongs to the section "Polymer Processing and Engineering".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 July 2024) | Viewed by 12842

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Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Ghaus Rizvi

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Guest Editor

Department of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science, Ontario Tech University, Oshawa, ON L1G0C5, Canada
Interests: additive manufacturing; advanced composites; nano-composites; smart materials tissue scaffolds; advanced manufacturing; green materials

Prof. Dr. Amir Hossein Behravesh

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Guest Editor

Additive Manufacturing Laboratory, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran 14117-13116, Iran
Interests: additive manufacturing; 3D printing; tissue engineering; composites; smart materials

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Additive manufacturing (AM) is very well-equipped to keep pace with the rapidly changing landscape of multidimensional manufacturing and is considered one of the pillars of the Industry 4.0 revolution that is currently taking place. Consequently, AM is continuing to experience rapid expansion as an advanced fabrication technology capable of utilizing many materials and offers several benefits for automation, lowering the cost, rapid prototyping, and customization of composite and complex structures, etc. The goal of this Special Issue is to seek high-quality manuscripts detailing research and developments related to AM of polymer-based composite materials. A partial list of possible topics is:

Advances in additive manufacturing;
Material and process innovation in AM;
AM using nanocomposites;
Characterization of AM fabricated products;
Fiber-reinforced 3D printing;
Bioprinting and tissue engineering;
Hybridization of AM.

Prof. Dr. Ghaus Rizvi
Prof. Dr. Amir Hossein Behravesh
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Polymers is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

additive manufacturing of composites
innovations in 3D printing
nanocomposites
fiber-reinforced composites
bioprinting

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Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

20 pages, 9637 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Effects of Microcrystalline Cellulose Addition on the Properties of Wood–PLA Filaments for 3D Printing

by Daša Krapež Tomec, Manfred Schöflinger, Jürgen Leßlhumer, Urška Gradišar Centa, Jure Žigon and Mirko Kariž

Polymers 2024, 16(6), 836; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym16060836 - 18 Mar 2024

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2809

Abstract

This paper describes the use of microcrystalline cellulose (MCC) as an additive in wood-polylactic acid (PLA) filaments suitable for 3D printing. Filaments prepared with PLA, thermally modified (TM) wood, and three different MCC loadings (1, 3, and 5 wt%) by two-step melt blending in the extruder were characterized with respect to their rheological, thermal, and mechanical response. The analyses demonstrate that a low MCC content (1%) improves the mobility of the polymer chains and contributes to a higher elasticity of the matrix chain, a higher crystallinity, a lower glass transition temperature (by 1.66 °C), and a lower melting temperature (by 1.31 °C) and leads to a higher tensile strength (1.2%) and a higher modulus of elasticity (12.1%). Higher MCC loading hinders the mobility of the polymer matrix and leads to a rearrangement of the crystal lattice structure, resulting in a decrease in crystallinity. Scanning electron micrographs show that the cellulose is well distributed and dispersed in the PLA matrix, with some agglomeration occurring at higher MCC levels. The main objective of this study was to develop and evaluate a filament containing an optimal amount of MCC to improve compatibility between wood and PLA, optimize melt processability, and improve mechanical properties. It can be concluded that a 1% addition of MCC favorably changes the properties of the wood–PLA filaments, while a higher MCC content does not have this effect. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Additive Manufacturing of Polymer-Based Composite Materials)

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26 pages, 7280 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Investigation of the Thermal Characteristics of a Novel Laser Sintering Machine for Additive Manufacturing of Continuous Carbon Fibre-Reinforced Polymer Parts

by Michael Baranowski, Felix Basalla, Florian Kößler and Jürgen Fleischer

Polymers 2023, 15(16), 3406; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym15163406 - 14 Aug 2023

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1781

Abstract

This paper presents the thermal analysis of a novel laser sintering machine for additive manufacturing of continuous carbon fibre-reinforced polymer parts. The core element of this machine is a fibre integration unit with a heated fibre nozzle. With the help of an additional heat source, which is mounted on the bottom side of the fibre integration unit, the temperature of the powder bed surface is kept within the sintering window of the PA12 material used in the investigations. Different heat source variants differing in shape and material were analysed experimentally concerning the heat distribution achieved within the powder bed surface using an infrared camera. Based on the best-rated variant showing the most homogeneous heat distribution, operating points for successful continuous fibre integration were experimentally identified. An aluminium plate with a closed fibre nozzle slot and symmetrical surface heating power has proven to keep the powder bed surface reliably warm. Compared to the initial state, the resulting increased uniformity of heat-affected zones created by the heated fibre nozzle HAZ was evaluated by fabricating a horseshoe part made of PA12. Furthermore, a CCFRP flat pedal for mountain bikes demonstrated roving integration’s process reliability and reproducibility. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Additive Manufacturing of Polymer-Based Composite Materials)

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15 pages, 13738 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Fused Filament Fabricated Poly(lactic acid) Parts Reinforced with Short Carbon Fiber and Graphene Nanoparticles with Improved Tribological Properties

by Anzum Al Abir, Dipto Chakrabarti and Bruno Trindade

Polymers 2023, 15(11), 2451; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym15112451 - 25 May 2023

Cited by 12 | Viewed by 2236

Abstract

This study investigated the mechanical and tribological properties of 3D-printed Poly (lactic acid) (PLA) composites reinforced with different concentrations of carbon fibers (SCF) and graphene nanoparticles (GNP) (0.5 to 5 wt.% of each filler). The samples were produced using FFF (fused filament fabrication) 3D printing. The results showed a good dispersion of the fillers in the composites. SCF and GNP promoted the crystallization of the PLA filaments. The hardness, elastic modulus, and specific wear resistance grew with the increase in the filler concentration. A hardness improvement of about 30% was observed for the composite with 5 wt.% of SCF + 5 wt.% GNP (PSG-5) compared to PLA. The same trend was observed for the elastic modulus with an increase of 220%. All the composites presented lower coefficients of friction (0.49 to 0.6) than PLA (0.71). The composite PSG-5 sample showed the lowest value of specific wear rate (4.04 × 10⁻⁴ mm³/N.m), corresponding to about a five times reduction compared to PLA. Therefore, it was concluded that the addition of GNP and SCF to PLA made it possible to obtain composites with better mechanical and tribological behavior. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Additive Manufacturing of Polymer-Based Composite Materials)

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12 pages, 2606 KiB

Open AccessArticle

ZnO-PLLA/PLLA Preparation and Application in Air Filtration by Electrospinning Technology

by Xinxin Liu, Dengbang Jiang, Yuyue Qin, Zhihong Zhang and Mingwei Yuan

Polymers 2023, 15(8), 1906; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym15081906 - 16 Apr 2023

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2376

Abstract

With the increasing environmental pollution caused by disposable masks, it is crucial to develop new degradable filtration materials for medical masks. ZnO-PLLA/PLLA (L-lactide) copolymers prepared from nano ZnO and L-lactide were used to prepare fiber films for air filtration by electrospinning technology. Structural characterization of ZnO-PLLA by H-NMR, XPS, and XRD demonstrated that ZnO was successfully grafted onto PLLA. An L₉(4³) standard orthogonal array was employed to evaluate the effects of the ZnO-PLLA concentration, ZnO-PLLA/PLLA content, DCM(dichloromethane) to DMF(N,N-dimethylformamide) ratio, and spinning time on the air filtration capacity of ZnO-PLLA/PLLA nanofiber films. It is noteworthy that the introduction of ZnO is important for the enhancement of the quality factor (QF). The optimal group obtained was sample No. 7, where the QF was 0.1403 Pa⁻¹, the particle filtration efficiency (PFE) was 98.3%, the bacteria filtration efficiency (BFE) was 98.42%, and the airflow resistance (Δp) was 29.2 Pa. Therefore, the as-prepared ZnO-PLLA/PLLA film has potential for the development of degradable masks. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Additive Manufacturing of Polymer-Based Composite Materials)

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22 pages, 11380 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Experimental and Numerical Investigation of the Mechanical Properties of 3D-Printed Hybrid and Non-Hybrid Composites

by Tim Heitkamp, Simon Girnth, Sebastian Kuschmitz, Nils Waldt, Günter Klawitter and Thomas Vietor

Polymers 2023, 15(5), 1164; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym15051164 - 25 Feb 2023

Cited by 11 | Viewed by 2608

Abstract

Recent research efforts have highlighted the potential of hybrid composites in the context of additive manufacturing. The use of hybrid composites can lead to an enhanced adaptability of the mechanical properties to the specific loading case. Furthermore, the hybridization of multiple fiber materials can result in positive hybrid effects such as increased stiffness or strength. In contrast to the literature, where only the interply and intrayarn approach has been experimentally validated, this study presents a new intraply approach, which is experimentally and numerically investigated. Three different types of tensile specimens were tested. The non-hybrid tensile specimens were reinforced with contour-based fiber strands of carbon and glass. In addition, hybrid tensile specimens were manufactured using an intraply approach with alternating carbon and glass fiber strands in a layer plane. In addition to experimental testing, a finite element model was developed to better understand the failure modes of the hybrid and non-hybrid specimens. The failure was estimated using the Hashin and Tsai–Wu failure criteria. The specimens showed similar strengths but greatly different stiffnesses based on the experimental results. The hybrid specimens demonstrated a significant positive hybrid effect in terms of stiffness. Using FEA, the failure load and fracture locations of the specimens were determined with good accuracy. Microstructural investigations of the fracture surfaces showed notable evidence of delamination between the different fiber strands of the hybrid specimens. In addition to delamination, strong debonding was particularly evident in all specimen types. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Additive Manufacturing of Polymer-Based Composite Materials)

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