Additive Manufacturing of Polymer-Matrix Composite Dielectric Materials Using Stereolithography Technique

Abstract

Stereolithography (SL) based 3D printing is promising to produce of next-generation dielectric materials because of its high geometric accuracy, less internal defect and high flexibility. Polymer matrix composites (PMCs) are widely used in the 3D printing of dielectric materials. However, the loading of high-refractive-index ceramic filler in PMCs significantly reduces their process compatibility, making it difficult to successfully fabricate the 3D printing materials. In this study, silane-coupling-agent (SCA) treated barium titanate microspheres (BT-S) were prepared using radio-frequency thermal plasma spheroidization (RF-TPS) and KH570 silane treatment. Experimental results showed that the prepared BT-S particles have spherical shape and impact structure. This enhances the 3D printability of UV curable PMCs by the improvement of UV curing performance and fluidity. Finally, 3D printing of UV/BT-S composites were successfully printed using stereolithography (SLA) 3D printing technique.