High-Density Bio-PE and Pozzolan Based Composites: Formulation and Prototype Design for Control of Low Water Flow.

Nicola Schiavone,Haroutioun Askanian,Vincent Verney

doi:10.3390/polym13121908

Nicola Schiavone, Haroutioun Askanian + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/polym13121908

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Abstract

An eco-friendly solution to produce new material for the material extrusion process is to use quarry waste as filler for biopolymer composites. A quarry waste that is still studied little as a filler for polymer composites is pozzolan. In this study, the optimization of the formulations and processing parameters of composites produced with pozzolan and bio-based polyethylene for 3D printing technology was performed. Furthermore, a precision irrigation system in the form of a drip watering cup was designed, printed, and characterized. The results showed that the presence of the pozzolan acted as a reinforcement for the composite material and improved the cohesion between the layers of the 3D printed objects. Furthermore, the optimization of the process conditions made it possible to print pieces of complex geometry and permeable parts for the control of the water flow rates with an order of magnitude in the range from mL/h to mL/day.

Highlights

The study and development of the material extrusion process as an additive manufacturing technique has never stopped since the first version presented by Scott Crump at Stratasys Inc. in 1989 [1]
In terms of 3D printing filament materials, acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) and polylactic acid (PLA) are the polymers filaments that dominate the market of 3D printing due to their availability and suitability from the point of view of adequate mechanical properties and dimensional accuracy of the final printed object [11,12]
Other common polymer filaments used for 3D printing fabrication are polyamide (PA), high-impact polystyrene (HIPS), polycarbonate (PC), and polyether ether ketone (PEEK), which are adopted for final application where higher mechanical properties and thermal stability are needed [13,14,15,16]

Summary

Introduction

The study and development of the material extrusion process as an additive manufacturing technique has never stopped since the first version presented by Scott Crump at Stratasys Inc. in 1989 [1]. There are many domains where additive manufacturing can be used, such as aeronautics, automotive and medical applications. Among these domains, the field of agriculture equipment has a lot of potential, and few studies have been conducted in relation to it. The field of agriculture equipment has a lot of potential, and few studies have been conducted in relation to it In this field, precision irrigation (a subgroup of precision agriculture) creates and optimizes systems to control the irrigation of the plants, depending on the environmental and operational context, and to avoid water and energy waste [3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10]. Other common polymer filaments used for 3D printing fabrication are polyamide (PA), high-impact polystyrene (HIPS), polycarbonate (PC), and polyether ether ketone (PEEK), which are adopted for final application where higher mechanical properties and thermal stability are needed [13,14,15,16]

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