Vat Photopolymerization Processes

Abstract

Photopolymerization processes make use of liquid, radiation-curable resins, or photopolymers, as their primary materials. Most photopolymers react to radiation in the ultraviolet (UV) range of wavelengths, but some visible light systems are used as well. Upon irradiation, these materials undergo a chemical reaction to become solid. This reaction is called photopolymerization, and is typically complex, involving many chemical participants.Photopolymers were developed in the late 1960s and soon became widely applied in several commercial areas, most notably the coating and printing industry. Many of the glossy coatings on paper and cardboard, for example, are photopolymers. Additionally, photo-curable resins are used in dentistry, such as for sealing the top surfaces of teeth to fill in deep grooves and prevent cavities. In these applications, coatings are cured by radiation that blankets the resin without the need for patterning either the material or the radiation. This changed with the introduction of stereolithography, the first vat photopolymerization process.

In Situ Thermal Generation of Silver Nanoparticles in 3D Printed Polymeric Structures

“…The resolution of these techniques is influenced by many factors, depending both on the photocurable system (curing mechanism, kinetics, free radical diffusion, etc.) [ 33 , 34 , 35 ] and the optical system [ 36 ]. The throughput of the SLA process is slow due to the point-by-point scanning nature of the direct-write of the laser system while the DLP exploits a digital micro mirror-array device (DMD), to produce a dynamic digital mask: An entire part cross section can be cured at one time, resulting in a faster process than scanning a laser beam [ 36 ].…”

Additive manufacturing high performance graphene-based composites: A review

“…Vat photopolymerization fabricates objects by solidifying liquid photosensitive resin with ultraviolet (UV) light ( Fig.3b). Vat polymerization covers the following systems such as stereolithography apparatus (SLA), digital light processing (DLP), scan, spin and selectively photocure (3SP), and continuous liquid interface production (CLIP) [103], during which process cationic and free-radical polymerization are two significant types of polymerization. In essence, vat polymerization is the polymerization and crosslinking reaction initiated by UV light, rapidly forming long chains and cross-linked polymeric networks.…”

Gradient Poly(ethylene glycol) Diacrylate and Cellulose Nanocrystals Tissue Engineering Composite Scaffolds via Extrusion Bioprinting

“…The major AM processes include directed energy deposition, vat polymerization, powder bed fusion, material jetting and extrusion, sheet lamination, and binder jetting. All of these can be sub-sectioned into many other specific categories based on applications for which they are applied (Guo and Leu, 2013; Gibson et al, 2015; Ngo et al, 2018; Tofail et al, 2018). Additionally, AM processes have been expanded to multiple materials ranging from metal alloys, to polymer composites, to ceramics and concrete, lending to the current state of materials development and functionality (Guo and Leu, 2013; Quan et al, 2015; Wang et al, 2017; Ngo et al, 2018).…”