Sustainable Nanocomposites for 3D Printing

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Advanced materials play a major role in the manufacturing of new products (automotive, aerospace, building, etc.) in Canada and other modern economies. Most recently, polymer nanocomposites and functional materials have enabled lower manufacturing costs (due to low temperature of processing) while improving the performance of products (lightweight, high stiffness). As a consequence, a continuous demand for products with improved performance, new functionality, and sustainability attributes have emerged. Polymer nanocomposites are hybrid materials consisting of polymer resins containing a distinct phase well dispersed at the nanometer scale. The rationale for creating hybrid materials is to extend the properties of commercially available resins, which results in improved polymer functionality while still being able to use existing manufacturing infrastructure. Polymer nanocomposites can fill gaps in the materials and manufacturing area. This proposal aims to develop sustainable polymer nanocomposites suitable for advanced manufacturing like 3D printing. Polysaccharide nanoparticles will be used in the preparation of polymer nanocomposites and applied to 3D printing; the additional novelty of this research program lies in the comparison of three types of polysaccharide nanoparticles. The availably of nanostarch and nanocellulose at industrial scale is very recent, whereas nanoparticles of poly(alfa1,3-glucan) are just about to become available. . Moreover, this research will make strides to correlate the preparation of novel polymer nanocomposites using renewable nanoparticles with applications in 3D printing. At the fundamental level, this research will investigate the role that these renewable nanoparticles play in the solidification of the polymer nanocomposites during 3D printing manufacturing and the enhancements in stiffness of 3D printed parts. The research will use experimental methods and modeling to correlate the morphology of the nanoparticles to physical properties (rate of solidification and stiffness). The expected impact of this research program will be the availability of new sustainable materials for prototyping complex automotive components required to accelerate the development of the next generation of lightweight and safe vehicles. HQP trained through this program will be uniquely positioned for careers in industry and academia with expertise in advanced materials and manufacturing. They will have fundamental knowledge in the fields of chemical and materials engineering, renewable nanomaterials, bioproducts, additive manufacturing (3D printing), advanced characterization of materials and modeling. They will be capable of advancing the development of novel materials required for innovation in relevant industrial sectors in Canada (automotive, aerospace, building, biomedical and consumer goods).