Unleashing the potential of waste: A supercharged high-performance 3D printing resin from discarded polylactic acid
Yu-Chung Chang
;
Lin Shao
;
Wangcheng Liu
, et al.
Chem. Eng. J.,2024,151250.
DOI:
10.1016/j.cej.2024.151250
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Abstract: In additive manufacturing/3D printing, the limitation no longer lies in people’s imagination but in the materials that one can print with. While the additive manufacturing process can virtually create any geometry, available applications are often limited by factors like parts’ mechanical strength, glass transition temperature, and heat deflection temperature. These factors are especially critical for polymer-based printing. Here we introduce a simple formulation derived from the aminolysis of polylactic acid (PLA) plastic waste, namely the N-lactoyl ethanolamine (N-LEA). The N-LEA is next reacted with excess methacrylic anhydride, forming a photo-crosslinkable resin for MSLA 3D printing. The resulting 3D printed part has a set of impressive properties that is unrivaled amongst engineering grade 3D printing resins on the market and research literature. The 3D printed part has an ultrahigh tensile strength of 131.7 MPa, glass transition at ～190 °C, and heat deflection temperature at 162.6 °C. This work demonstrates a true upcycling approach for turning PLA waste into a value-added product in a simple and efficient manner while also expanding the high-performance material portfolio available for photocuring additive manufacturing.
Keywords:
Additive manufacturing ;
3D printing ;
Photocurable resin ;
Masked stereolithography ;
PLA upcycling
Purchased from AmBeed:
162881-26-7
Sustainable and Recyclable Acrylate Resins for Liquid-Crystal Display 3D Printing Based on Lipoic Acid
Shiwei Han
;
Valentin A. Bobrin
;
Maxime Michelas
, et al.
ACS Macro Lett.,2024,13,1495-1502.
DOI:
10.1021/acsmacrolett.4c00600
PubMed ID:
39446026
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Abstract: The development of renewable vinyl-based photopolymer resins offers a promising solution to reducing the environmental impact associated with 3D printed materials. This study introduces a bifunctional lipoate cross-linker containing a dynamic disulfide bond, which is combined with acrylic monomers (n-butyl acrylate) and conventional photoinitiators to develop photopolymer resins that are compatible with commercial stereolithography 3D printing. The incorporation of disulfide bonds within the polymer network's backbone imparts the 3D printed objects with self-healing capabilities and complete degradability. Remarkably, the degraded resin can be fully recycled and reused for high-resolution reprinting of complex structures while preserving mechanical properties that are comparable to the original material. This proof-of-concept study not only presents a sustainable strategy for advancing acrylate-based 3D printing materials, but also introduces a novel approach for fabricating fully recyclable 3D-printed structures. This method paves the way for reducing the environmental impact while enhancing material reusability, offering significant potential for the development of eco-friendly additive manufacturing.
Purchased from AmBeed:
1077-28-7 ;
162881-26-7 ;
1427057-53-1
Photo-Curing 3D Printing of Thermosetting Sacrificial Tooling for Fabricating Fiber-Reinforced Hollow Composites
Zhao, Baoming
;
Hao, Cheng
;
Chang, Yu-Chung
, et al.
Adv. Funct. Mater.,2023,2213663.
DOI:
10.1002/adfm.202213663
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Abstract: Carbon fiber-reinforced hollow composites play a vital role in light weighting modern cars and aircrafts. Fabrication of such hollow composites with seamless internal finish requires sacrificial tooling that can be used under pressure and high temperature For the very first time, high performance sacrificial tooling that can be used to fabricate fiber-reinforced hollow composites is produced using photocuring 3D printing technol. This is achieved by developing UV-curable resins containing highly soluble yet hydrolyzable acetal acrylate crosslinker and hydrophilic 4-acryloylmorpholine monomer. It is found that the cross-linker content greatly affects the printing speed. Further, the widely adopted UV post-curing method is found to have negligible impact on improving the thermal-mech. properties of printed structures. After thermal post-treatment, printed sacrificial tooling exhibits a heat deflection temperature of 112°C at 0.455 MPa and an average coefficient of linear thermal expansion of 59 ppm °C-1 between 30 and 100°C. As a result, printed tooling enables fabrication of carbon fiber-reinforced hollow composites with complex geometry, which shows a tensile strength of 802 MPa and an elastic modulus of 50.2 GPa.
Purchased from AmBeed:
162881-26-7
Bona fide upcycling strategy of anhydride cured epoxy and reutilization of decomposed dual monomers into multipurpose applications
Shao, Lin
;
Chang, Yu-Chung
;
Zhao, Baoming
, et al.
Chem. Eng. J.,2023,464,142735.
DOI:
10.1016/j.cej.2023.142735
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Abstract: Waste epoxy materials become an enormous problem to society and the environment. The advantages of epoxy resins derive from their rigid and chem. stable networks, but these qualities also make them difficult to dispose of or recycle. Herein, we demonstrated an efficient degradation of anhydride cured epoxy resin by aminolysis in aminoethanol without using any catalysts. The epoxy resin was fully decomposed at 160°C in 4 h, resulting in two distinct high purity monomers (HHPA-OH and BPA-OH). To fully realize this upcycling approach, The BPA-OH was used to synthesize a polyurethane coating with an excellent glass transition temperature (88.9°C), scratch hardness (8H), gouge hardness (6H), adhesive strength (5B), and strong solvent resistance. The HHPA-OH with two hydroxyl groups was reacted with methacrylic anhydride to form a dimethacrylate monomer which was then used as a viable crosslinker for photo-curable 3D printing thermosetting polymer with tensile strength as high as 64 MPa and impact strength of 4.86 kJ/m2. This work demonstrates a feasible pathway to convert anhydride cured epoxy waste to new monomeric recyclates for superior polymer products.
Keywords:
Thermosets ;
Aminolysis ;
Chemical recycling to monomers ;
Upcycling ;
3D printing
Purchased from AmBeed:
162881-26-7
A chemical approach for the future of PLA upcycling: from plastic wastes to new 3D printing materials
Lin Shao
;
Yu-Chung Chang
;
Cheng Hao
, et al.
Green Chem.,2022,24(22):8716-8724.
DOI:
10.1039/D2GC01745H
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Abstract: As the demand for PLA increases, post-consumer disposal strategies must be carefully considered. While we would love to embrace a bioplastic future, we also need to tread carefully. Though PLA is widely claimed to be biodegradable, full degradation often requires conditions not typically found in landfills or industrial composting. Therefore, it will negatively impact the environment if treated carelessly. In this work, we report a simple PLA upcycling path to turn existing PLA wastes into new 3D printable materials within 48 hours. The ester bonds of PLA can be cleaved efficiently via aminolysis. The obtained monomeric compound was derivatized with methacrylic anhydride, which introduces double bonds and thus a cross-linkable monomer is obtained. In combination with a comonomer and initiator, a photocurable resin is produced. The resin can be fed into any commercially available photocuring 3D printer. The 3D printed parts derived from PLA wastes exhibit impressive performances with a tensile strength of 58.6 MPa, Young's modulus of 2.8 GPa, and glass transition at ～180 °C. Our work demonstrates a new route to active upcycling of PLA while minimizing the need for disposal.
Purchased from AmBeed:
162881-26-7
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