Electrical and Magnetic Properties of 3D Printed Integrated Conductive Biodegradable Polymer Nanocomposites for Sustainable Electronics Development

Abstract

This article reports research on the development and implementation of new methods for structurally integrated and recyclable polymer based electronic products via multi-head fused deposition modelling (FDM) 3D printing. The focus of this research is to propose an efficient FDM-3D printing process utilising multiple filaments with no interruption of the process to ensure the multi-material electronic product achieved is structurally integrated. Such research is an attempt towards development of recyclable rigid electronic structures via multi-material 3D printing, i.e., multiple conductive nanomaterial embedded thermoplastic and non-conductive thermoplastic layers (in coil forms, herein). Six radio frequency identification (RFID) tag coil geometries were selected for the study. The thermoplastic polymer used in this research was polylactic acid (PLA), and the conductive filament was carbon black nanoparticle embedded PLA at approx. 21 wt.%. The nozzle and filaments diameters examined were 1.75 mm. A MakerBot Replicator 2X 3D printer was partially disassembled to be equipped with a dual head, for our examinations. The research investigated the major challenges ahead of the proposed development, mainly, on the deteriorating effects on the quality of the integrated product (structural integrity, electric and magnetic properties) induced by the 3D printing process parameters (e.g., temperature). The most efficient nozzle and bed temperatures to prevent visible defects were found to be higher than the supplier’s recommendation, attributed to the uncertainties associated with the multi-material composition, and were found to require 248 and 100 °C for reliable and continued FDM printing, respectively. The measurements on the electric and magnetic properties, using 4-wire resistance and Hall effect method, respectively, were conducted to quantify process induced deteriorating effects, quantitatively. It has been examined whether the multi-material electronic structure can be achieved via uninterrupted (continuous) processing of polymer nanocomposite-based identification systems for recyclability purpose whilst maintaining the electromagnetic properties of it, a promising technology for reducing landfill. Recommendations were identified for best practices behind such development.