Low‐temperature 3D printing and curing process of continuous fiber‐reinforced thermosetting polymer composites

Abstract

The reported work has developed a methodology of printing and curing continuous fiber‐reinforced thermosetting polymer composites (CFRTPCs) with excellent mechanical properties at low temperatures. First, to print and cure CFRTPCs at low temperatures, a thermosetting polymer system was proposed, consisting of phenol based epoxy resin and curing agent (F‐44/2E4MZ). The rheological properties of the polymer system were analyzed to determine a reasonable printing temperature. Second, the non‐linear Vyazovkin integral method was applied to establish the model‐free kinetics (MFK) of the resin system. MFK can predict the curing degree curves at the characteristic temperatures obtained by extrapolation. Reasonable curing process parameters were determined by analyzing the predicted curing degree curves. Then, CFRTPC samples were prepared with the low‐temperature 3D printing process and the low‐temperature curing process, and the fiber content was found to be 53 wt.%. At last, the mechanical property measurements revealed that the tensile and flexural strengths were 1012 MPa and 929 MPa, respectively. This work can further expand the potential applications of 3D printed CFRTPCs in aerospace and defense industries which require high mechanical properties and temperature safety simultaneously.

The Three-Dimensional Printing of Composites: A Review of the Finite Element/Finite Volume Modelling of the Process

“…The lower G/D shows a superior fiber orientation stability, with a relatively smaller "core"oriented volume, as one can see in Figure 27C,D. As discussed in terms of the single direction extrusion process, the more practical case of in-plane deposition and direction change has been analyzed (Zhang et al, 2023) [102]. The numerical model is a non-linear transient for CCF-PA, developed in ABAQUS.…”

“…The principle included the in-situ impregnation of fibers through a liquid resin reservoir, resulting in the composite being extruded through a nozzle and then cured either by a heat or light source, such as one may see in Figure 2. Reinforcements are mainly synthetic fibers such as CF, GF, or Aramid [49][50][51], with thermoset resins such as epoxy [52,53], photo-curable acrylic resins [54,55], phenolic resins [56], or frontal polymerization resins [57].…”

Interlaminar and translaminar fracture toughness of 3D‐printed continuous fiber reinforced composites: A review and prospect

“…Besides, research on 3D-printed CFRCs also has gained significant attention in recent years. 4,[20][21][22] According to data obtained using keywords "3D printing, composites and continuous fiber" on Web of Science, there have been 402 articles on 3D-printed CFRCs (till November 2023). In addition, many of these articles related to the fracture behavior of 3D-printed CFRCs.…”

Investigation on process window of 3D printed continuous glass fiber‐reinforced thermosetting composites

“…Novel fabrication techniques would allow thermoset composite materials to be used in a broader range of applications. 40 This study aims to assess the feasibility of fabricating CFTCs using FDM, a cost-effective 3D printing technique. 41 For the first time, an extensive investigation has been conducted to systematically analyze the impacts of crucial printing parameters, including print speed, nozzle diameter, and printing thickness, with the goal of determining an optimal process window for CFTC printing.…”

“…The development of improved fabrication methods that overcome these limitations requires further research. Novel fabrication techniques would allow thermoset composite materials to be used in a broader range of applications 40 . This study aims to assess the feasibility of fabricating CFTCs using FDM, a cost‐effective 3D printing technique 41 .…”