ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING OF FUNCTIONAL POLYMER COMPOSITES THROUGH STEREOLITHOGRAPHY

Abstract

Additive manufacturing (AM), widely known as 3D printing (3DP), is progressing over traditional manufacturing techniques and rapidly transforming industries like medicine, aerospace, electronics, automotive and construction by transforming prototyping into functional applications. Among AM techniques is stereolithography (SLA), a vat polymerization technique that subsequently solidifies photopolymer resin through UV light. SLA excels due to its high precision, ability to create complex, intricate shapes, high finish quality and compatibility with diverse photopolymers. The integration of functional polymer composites into SLA further expands its potential, enabling the creation of materials with advanced properties like electrical conductivity, shape memory, responsiveness to external stimuli, and biocompatibility. This thesis investigates the development, optimization, and characterization of functional polymer composites for AM through SLA. The study focuses on two different polymer composites, i.e. magnesium-incorporated Poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) resin composites and cobalt iron oxide (CIO) incorporated resin magnetoactive polymer composites (MAPCs). Each polymer composite is tailored for specific applications. Magnesium-based PMMA composites were developed for potential biomedical applications, showing promise for bone tissue engineering and drug delivery, although they faced challenges like particle sedimentation, which affected printability. Resin/CIO MAPCs were fabricated with magnetic responsiveness tunable by nanoparticle concentration, though higher concentrations reduced mechanical strength due to agglomeration. Detailed physicochemical, mechanical and thermal characterizations were conducted to assess material performance. Whereas, biocompatibility and magnetic actuation experiments were performed for the specific applications. The experimental finding demonstrated SLA's potential for fabricating intricate, high-performance structures however, the need for further optimization was identified to overcome material and process limitations. This research contributes valuable knowledge to material synthesis and the SLA optimization process, facilitating future development in functional materials.

Date of Award	2025
Original language	American English
Awarding Institution	HBKU College of Science and Engineering