Preparation and properties enhancement of poly(lactic acid)/calcined‐seashell biocomposites for3Dprinting applications

Abstract

AbstractIn the recent few years, fused filament fabrication technique have seen extensively used to produce complex‐geometry objects. However, the relatively restricted range of 3D printable biocomposites decelerated its adoption in the biomedical sector as a conventional manufacturing technique. In this method, the introduction of biofillers with unique properties to produce high performance composites as printing feedstocks are increasingly recommended. The interest in using eco‐friendly fillers from waste as reinforcing agents for producing lightweight and low‐cost poly(lactic acid) (PLA) composites is recently increased. In this work, a series of PLA biocomposites filled with calcined seashell (CSh) particles have been prepared by melt mixing technique using a twin‐screw extruder, and characterized by different morphological, thermal, and mechanical methods. The visco‐elastic parameters have been determined for these biocomposites to optimize their processing conditions. The morphological analysis revealed a homogenous dispersion of CSh fillers within the biopolymeric matrix, which was responsible for the enhancement of the various mechanical properties. Where, by adding 10 wt% of treated CSh, the tensile modulus and strength were significantly increased from 183.8 ± 4.7 MPa and 29.81 ± 1.8 MPa to 241.9 ± 63 MPa and 49.06 ± 8.87 MPa, respectively, compared to the virgin PLA. In addition, respected to PLA matrix, the compressive moduli of the printed specimens of PLA/5CSh and PLA/10CSh biocomposite filaments exhibited improvements of 5% and 14%, respectively. Moreover, the thermal analysis showed a marked improvement in the thermal stability of the elaborated biocomposites, where the degradation temperature (Td50) have been upgraded by 4°C for the biocomposite containing 10 wt% of CSh bio‐filler. These outstanding properties of PLA/CSh composites make them very suitable for 3D printing applications in the biomedical field.