Abstract
Graphene oxide (GO) induced enhancement of elastomer properties showed a great deal of potential in recent years, but it is still limited by the barrier of the complicated synthesis processes. Stereolithography (SLA), used in fabrication of thermosets and very recently in “flexible” polymers with elastomeric properties, presents itself as simple and user-friendly method for integration of GO into elastomers. In this work, it was first time demonstrated that GO loadings can be incorporated into commercial flexible photopolymer resins to successfully fabricate GO/elastomer nanocomposites via readily accessible, consumer-oriented SLA printer. The material properties of the resulting polymer was characterized and tested. The mechanical strength, stiffness, and the elongation of the resulting polymer decreased with the addition of GO. The thermal properties were also adversely affected upon the increase in the GO content based on differential scanning calorimetry and thermogravimetric analysis results. It was proposed that the GO agglomerates within the 3D printed composites, can result in significant change in both mechanical and thermal properties of the resulting nanocomposites. This study demonstrated the possibility for the development of the GO/elastomer nanocomposites after the optimization of the GO/“flexible” photoreactive resin formulation for SLA with suitable annealing process of the composite in future.
Highlights
3D printing technology has attracted interest of different research groups, since it is a useful technology in the high-end machine sector [1]
In comparison to the blank products, in the GOmodified SLA printed flexible polymer nanocomposites, the color of the products was changed from semitransparent to dark green after the raw Graphene oxide (GO) was mixed with the resin
transmittance electron microscopy (TEM) images presented in Figs. 2 and 3(a,b) represent 0.1 wt-% GO/Formlabs flexible resin and raw GO dispersed in chloroform respectively
Summary
3D printing technology has attracted interest of different research groups, since it is a useful technology in the high-end machine sector [1]. Due to the attractive properties of graphene, such as high mechanical strength [2], and high electrical [3] and thermal conductivity [4], it recently became a popular material for research to improve the properties of polymer in different aspects. Two typical practices for such process include in-situ intercalation [5,6,7], and the solution intercalation [1,5,6] Among these methods, direct dispersion of GO into polymer through solution intercalation [5,6] was one of the most convenient ways for the 3D structural printing of graphene based materials/polymer matrix, since the in-situ intercalation of GO with polymer requires an extra mechanical process in order to mix the GO and polymer homogeneously, especially when GO is obtained from a freeze drying process and not in a powder form. Correct combination of the solvent and the resin for the GO reinforced 3D structural polymer production becomes an important factor
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