Printability Study of a Conductive Polyaniline/Acrylic Formulation for 3D Printing

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Polymer Chemistry
• Additive Manufacturing

Background:

• Developing conductive polymers is crucial for advanced 3D printing applications.
• Digital Light Processing (DLP) 3D printing requires specialized resin formulations for optimal performance.

Purpose of the Study:

• To predict and optimize the printability of polyaniline (PANI)/acrylate formulations for DLP 3D printing.
• To determine the maximum PANI loading for enhanced conductivity without compromising print quality.
• To assess the mechanical properties and electrical conductivity of the resulting composite materials.

Main Methods:

• Utilized photorheology and Jacobs working curves to predict resin printability.
• Varied polyaniline (PANI) content and photoinitiator concentration in acrylate-based resins.
• Measured cure depth (C) and gel point times to correlate with printability.
• Evaluated electrical conductivity and mechanical properties of the 3D printed composites.

Main Results:

• Photorheology effectively predicted the printability of PANI/acrylate resins.
• Most formulations were printable by adjusting layer thickness based on cure depth (C).
• Maximum PANI loading of ~3 wt% achieved conductivity of 10^-5 S cm^-1, a significant increase over the base resin.
• Higher PANI content did not improve conductivity and negatively impacted print quality.
• Optimal photoinitiator concentration was identified between 6-7 wt%.
• Mechanical properties of the acrylic matrix were preserved in the conductive composites.

Conclusions:

• Simple, low-cost conductive composites were successfully developed for DLP 3D printing.
• The developed materials are viable for applications in flexible electronic devices.
• Photorheology is an effective tool for predicting and optimizing resin formulations for 3D printing.