Quantifying the Shape Memory Performance of a Three-Dimensional-Printed Biobased Polyester/Cellulose Composite Material

A biobased composite material with heat-triggered shape memory ability was successfully formulated for three-dimensional (3D) printing. It was produced from cellulose nanocrystals and cellulose micro-powder particles within a bioderived thermally cured polyester matrix based on glycerol, citric acid, and sebacic acid. The effect of curing duration on the material's shape memory behavior was quantified by using two thermo-mechanical approaches to measure recovery: (1) displacement in three-point bending and (2) angular recovery from a beam bent at 90° in a single cantilever setup. Extending curing duration increased the material's glass-transition temperature from -26°C after 6 h to 13°C after 72 h of curing. Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy confirmed the associated progressive conversion of functional groups consistent with polyester formation. Slow recovery rates and low levels of shape recovery (22-70%) were found for samples cured less than 24 h. Those results also indicated a high dependence on the measurement approach. In contrast, samples cured for 48 and 72 h exhibited faster recovery rates, a significantly higher recovery percentage (90-100%) and were less sensitive to the measurement approach. Results demonstrated that once a sufficient curing threshold was achieved, additional curing time could be used to tune the material glass-transition temperature and create heat-triggered 3D-printed products.