Novel high performance polymeric composite materials for additive manufacturing of multifunctional components

该提案的目的是开发用于增材制造（AM）的新型高性能纳米复合材料。增材制造领域，也被称为3D打印，在过去的几十年里，由于传统制造业无法提供的一些关键优势，几乎在所有工业部门都有了显着的发展。其中包括大规模定制、几何复杂性、无工具制造和可持续制造。使用AM的公司包括GE（医疗设备和家用电器部件）、洛克希德·马丁公司和波音公司（航空航天和国防）、Invisalign（牙科设备）和LUXeXcel（发光二极管或LED透镜）。全球3D打印收入预计将从2013年的30.7亿美元增长到2018年的128亿美元，到2020年将超过210亿美元，到2025年每年可能产生2300亿至5500亿美元的经济影响。虽然增材制造产品的预测是巨大的，但只有当我们能够实际制造具有所需性能的零件时，这一目标才能实现。然而，大多数聚合物AM研究都集中在低玻璃化转变温度（Tg）聚合物上，例如聚酰胺11、12、聚碳酸酯和聚乳酸（PLA），因为它们具有良好的加工特性（流变性、热和结晶性）。对于通常存在苛刻环境条件的航空航天、电信和国防中的高级高价值应用（以及在一些关键的生物医学应用中），这些用于AM的低Tg聚合物是不可接受的，因此存在开发用于这些应用的材料的真实的需要。虽然足够高的Tg聚合物可以提供所需的高性能，但具有增加的功能和性能的潜在组合（例如高刚度、强度、磨损和特定的热、电和微波响应）的纳米复合材料可以真正改变AM组件的性能。通过添加纳米颗粒来操纵其他性能（如流变性能和热性能）的能力在加工特性方面提供了进一步的潜在优势。该提案将研究无机类富勒烯（IF）二硫化钨（WS 2）或IF-WS 2作为高价值PAEK（聚芳醚酮）基产品的纳米填料的潜力，该产品通过选择性激光烧结（SLS）和熔融沉积成型（FDM）的AM工艺制成。IF颗粒的引入已被证明对于改善各种热塑性聚合物（如聚丙烯、尼龙-6、聚苯硫醚、聚醚醚酮）的热性能、机械性能和摩擦学性能是有效的。这些纳米复合材料是由简单的熔融加工路线，而不需要改性剂或表面活性剂。IF-WS 2已被证明在复合材料中具有极高的摩擦学性能，可降低磨损和摩擦系数。这些特性也将对AM工艺具有重要的加工性能优势，其分散特性上级1D和2D纳米颗粒。它们也是人类已知的最好的减震笼结构。重要的是，它们无毒，热稳定。我们将研究用于生产具有工程特性的零件的两种主要AM工艺，选择性激光烧结（SLS），其中使用激光将粉末聚合物熔化并烧结成最终零件，以及熔融沉积成型（FDM），其中聚合物细丝在加热的喷嘴中熔化并以所需的图案沉积以形成零件。

The aim of this proposal is to develop novel high performance, nanocomposite feed materials for Additive Manufacturing (AM). The field of AM, also known also as 3D Printing, has expanded significantly over the last couple of decades across virtually all-industrial sectors due a number of key advantages that traditional manufacturing just cannot offer. These include mass customisation, geometrical complexity, tool-less manufacture and sustainable manufacturing. Among the companies using AM are GE (medical devices, and home appliance parts), Lockheed Martin and Boeing (aerospace and defense), Invisalign (dental devices) and LUXeXcel (lenses for light-emitting diodes, or LEDs). The worldwide revenue from 3D printing is expected to grow from $3.07 billion in 2013 to $12.8 billion by 2018, and exceed $21 billion by 2020, and has a potential of generating an economic impact of $230 billion to $550 billion per year by 2025. While the forecast for AM products is huge this will only be achieved if we can actually manufacture parts with the desired properties. The majority of polymeric AM research is however focused on low glass transition temperature (Tg) polymers such as Polyamide 11, 12 , Polycarbonate and Poly Lactic acid (PLA), due to their good processing characteristics (rheological, thermal and crystallization). For advanced, high value applications in aerospace, telecommunication and defense where harsh environmental conditions often exist (and in some key biomedical application) these low Tg polymers for AM are not acceptable so there is a real need to develop materials for these applications. Whilst a sufficiently high Tg polymer could offer the required high performance, nanocomposites with increased functionalities and potential combinations of properties such as high stiffness, strength, wear and specific thermal, electrical and microwave response can really transform the performance of AM components. The ability to manipulate other properties, such as rheological and thermal performance, by the addition of nanoparticles offers further potential advantages in terms of processing characteristics. This proposal will examine the potential of inorganic fullerene-like (IF) tungsten disulfide (WS2) or IF-WS2 as nanofillers for high value, PAEK (Poly Aryl Ether Ketone) based products made via the AM processes of Selective Laser Sintering (SLS) and Fused Deposition Modelling (FDM). The incorporation of IF particles has been shown to be efficient for improving thermal, mechanical and tribological properties of various thermoplastic polymers, such as polypropylene, nylon-6, poly(phenylene sulfide), poly(ether ether ketone). These nanocomposites were fabricated by simple melt-processing routes without the need for modifiers or surfactants . IF-WS2 have been proven to exhibit extremely high tribological performance in composites to reduce wear and coefficient of friction .These characteristics will also have important processability benefits for AM processes as will their dispersion characteristics which are superior to 1D and 2D nanoparticles. They are also the best shock absorbing cage structures known to mankind. Importantly, they are non-toxic, and thermally stable. We will examine the two main AM processes for producing parts with engineering properties, Selective Laser Sintering (SLS) in which a laser is used to melt and sinter powdered polymer into the final part and Fused Deposition Modelling (FDM) in which a polymer filament is melted in a heated nozzle and deposited in the required pattern to form the part.