skip to main content


Title: Continuous fiber extruder for desktop 3D printers toward long fiber embedded hydrogel 3D printing
Award ID(s):
2015317
NSF-PAR ID:
10335096
Author(s) / Creator(s):
; ;
Date Published:
Journal Name:
HardwareX
Volume:
11
Issue:
C
ISSN:
2468-0672
Page Range / eLocation ID:
e00297
Format(s):
Medium: X
Sponsoring Org:
National Science Foundation
More Like this
  1. null (Ed.)
  2. Manoj Gupta (Ed.)

    Three-dimensional (3D) printing with continuous carbon-fiber-reinforced polymer (C-CFRP) composites is under increasing development, as it offers more versatility than traditional molding processes, such as the out-of-autoclave-vacuum bag only (OOA-VBO) process. However, due to the layer-by-layer deposition of materials, voids can form between the layers and weaken some of the parts’ properties, such as the interlaminar shear strength (ILSS). In this paper, a novel mold-less magnetic compaction force-assisted additive manufacturing (MCFA-AM) method was used to print carbon nanofiber (CNF) z-threaded CFRP (ZT-CFRP) laminates with significantly improved ILSS and reduced void content compared to traditional C-CFRP laminates, which are printed using a no-pressure 3D-printing process (similar to the fused-deposition-modeling process). The radial flow alignment (RFA) and resin-blending techniques were utilized to manufacture a printing-compatible fast-curing ZT-CFRP prepreg tape to act as the feedstock for a MCFA-AM printhead, which was mounted on a robotic arm. In terms of the ILSS, the MCFA-AM method coupled with ZT-CFRP nanomaterial technology significantly outperformed the C-CFRP made with both the traditional no-pressure 3D-printing process and the OOA-VBO molding process. Furthermore, the mold-less MCFA-AM process more than doubled the production speed of the OOA-VBO molding process. This demonstrates that through the integration of new nanomaterials and 3D-printing techniques, a paradigm shift in C-CFRP manufacturing with significantly better performance, versatility, agility, efficiency, and lower cost is achievable.

     
    more » « less
  3. New printing strategies have enabled 3D-printed materials that imitate traditional textiles. These filament-based textiles are easy to fabricate but lack the look and feel of fiber textiles. We seek to augment 3D-printed textiles with needlecraft to produce composite materials that integrate the programmability of additive fabrication with the richness of traditional textile craft. We present PunchPrint: a technique for integrating fiber and filament in a textile by combining punch needle embroidery and 3D printing. Using a toolpath that imitates textile weave structure, we print a flexible fabric that provides a substrate for punch needle production. We evaluate our material’s robustness through tensile strength and needle compatibility tests. We integrate our technique into a parametric design tool and produce functional artifacts that show how PunchPrint broadens punch needle craft by reducing labor in small, detailed artifacts, enabling the integration of openings and multiple yarn weights, and scaffolding soft 3D structures. 
    more » « less
  4. Fast track article for IS&T International Symposium on Electronic Imaging 2020: Computational Imaging proceedings. 
    more » « less