Publications Details

Additive Manufacturing of Polymers: Materials Opportunities and Emerging Applications

Black, Hayden T.; Celina, Mathias C.; McElhanon, James R.

Additive manufacturing (AM) has enabled the rapid prototyping of structures with complex geometries constructed via computer aided design (CAD). In recent years, AM has extended beyond simple prototyping and has begun to play a role in the fabrication of active components, especially for applications that do not require materials with robust mechanical properties (i.e. electronic components and biomedical scaffolds). This report reviews the current state of 3D printing with respect to polymeric and composite materials, focusing on applications, printing processes, and material selection perspectives. A particular focus is placed on the polymer chemistry of additive manufacturing in order to elucidate current materials limitations, R&D trends and developmental opportunities. Some unconventional thermoset cure reactions are proposed for AM which may overcome current limitations. In addition, potential degradation characteristics of AM polymer materials and expected property variations in comparison with traditional processing are discussed, which draws attention to the complexity of the structure/processing/property relationships for the optimization of innovative materials. AM polymer manufacturing and 3D printing approaches hold tremendous promises as long as polymer chemistry, material physics and processing aspects (cure on demand) are jointly embraced within evolving research strategies.