Polypropylene/poly(ethylene terephthalate) microfibrillar reinforced composites manufactured by fused filament fabrication

Abstract

In the present work, microfibrillar composites (MFCs) consisting of polypropylene (PP) and poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) were successfully produced by melt extrusion and cold stretching. The resulting filaments were then printed using fused filament fabrication. The morphological results demonstrate that the highly oriented PET fibrils after stretching are still well preserved in the printed components. Since the printing process defines the alignment of the fibrils in the final component the fibers can be perfectly adapted to the load paths. Comparative analyses of the mechanical properties reveal that the PET fibrils act as an effective reinforcement in the 3D printed components, resulting in the superior mechanical performance of the PP/PET MFCs compared to a PP/PET blend and a neat PP. Due to the combination of material and innovative processing, the study opens up a new way of using the morphology‐based enormous potential of polymer fibers for lightweight, cost‐effective and recyclable full polymer solutions in compact components.

Development of sustainable cellulose‐based composite of polypropylene reinforced by recycled microfibrillar poly (ethylene terephthalate)

“…During the melt extrusion, various shapes of RPET can be formed which can affect the mechanical properties of the blend 64 . It was revealed that increasing the weight ratio of RPET in the blend can enhance the shear stress in the compounding process leading to the formation of longer major axis elliptical shape 65,66 …”

“…64 It was revealed that increasing the weight ratio of RPET in the blend can enhance the shear stress in the compounding process leading to the formation of longer major axis elliptical shape. 65,66 The SEM image of cryo-fractured surface of HOB shown in Figure 4B, exhibited microfibrils with almost uniform cross-section formed during blending. It is obvious that well oriented PET fibrils with a high aspect ratio was formed, suggesting that compatibilizer covers the PET particles during the mixing and prevents the coalescence in the drawing procedure.…”

Fused Deposition Modeling of Single-Use Plastic Alloy

“…PO/ PET blend is therefore with poor interfacial adhesion and two-phase morphology [15,16]. Although various compatibilizers [17,18] and new processing methods are used, microfibrillar reinforced composite [19,20], for instance, are developed; a valuable route for PE/PET or PP/PET blend recovery has not been satisfactorily established.…”

Print path‐dependent contact temperature dependency for 3D printing using fused filament fabrication

“…Fused filament fabrication (FFF) has attracted considerable attention as an effective tool due to its simplicity, low timeto-market, and freedom of design. [1][2][3][4] Although it is a decades technology, 5 FFF is one of the methods with the greatest potential to satisfy the design with various geometry of components and deposit multiple parts simultaneously. [6][7][8] In FFF, a thermoplastic filament is melted in a moving hot nozzle via heat conduction, and then the strand is deposited according to a laying pattern matched to the component.…”

“…Fused filament fabrication (FFF) has attracted considerable attention as an effective tool due to its simplicity, low time‐to‐market, and freedom of design 1–4 . Although it is a decades technology, 5 FFF is one of the methods with the greatest potential to satisfy the design with various geometry of components and deposit multiple parts simultaneously 6–8 .…”