3D-printing of biomass furan-based polyesters with robust mechanical performance and shape memory property

Abstract

3D-printing provides a feasible technique for realizing new materials into structural and intelligent parts. In this work, biomass furan-based polyesters poly (ethylene furanoate) (PEF), poly (trimethylene furanoate) (PTF), and poly (butylene furanoate) (PBF) were successfully synthesized in a 5 L reactor through the melt polycondensation process and fabricated into 3D-printing feedstocks. It was demonstrated that the three furan-based polyesters were additively-manufactured into complicated structures. Besides, the mechanical and thermal properties of furan-based polyesters could be tailored by the chain length of diol monomer. The mechanical performance of 3D-printed PEF, PTF and PBF were characterized and compared with commercial filaments. The tensile strength of PEF and PTF could reach 74.6 and 63.8 MPa respectively, which exhibited superior tensile property to poly(ether-ether-ketone) (PEEK), polyamide (PA) and polylactic acid (PLA). Meanwhile, the compression results demonstrated that the PEF and PTF possessed comparable energy absorption capacity with PEEK and PLA respectively, which indicated excellent mechanical properties of furan-based polyesters. It was interesting to find that the 3D-printed structures including solid cube, bionic flower and lattice structures were employed to prove that the PTF possessed excellent shape memory properties. Therefore, the proposed biomass furan-based polymers would offer more freedom in the field of 3D-printing.