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A special issue of Polymers (ISSN 2073-4360). This special issue belongs to the section "Smart and Functional Polymers".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (25 November 2023) | Viewed by 23517

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Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Minghsien Hsueh

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Guest Editor

Department of Industrical Engineering and Management, Natioinal Kaoshiung University of Science and Technology, Kaoshiung City 807, Taiwan
Interests: 3D printing; combustion of engine; solid mechanics; nonthermal plasma

Prof. Dr. Lavinia Cosmina Ardelean

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Guest Editor

Department of Technology of Materials and Devices in Dental Medicine, “Victor Babes” University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Timisoara, Romania
Interests: dental materials/biomaterials; alloys; ceramics; thermoplastic resins; 3D printing/bioprinting; CAD/CAM milling; corrosion evaluation; welding; scanning; coating; oral health; dental caries
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Three-dimensional printing technology is commonly used in many fields. The multiple polymers based on different 3D printing technic demonstrate diversified and anisotropic material behavior, such as fused deposition modeling, which produces the part with the melting material; or the stereo-lithography apparatus method, which uses UV irradiation to cure liquid resin. The process method of 3D printers, i.e., the forming temperature, layer thickness, build direction, density, infill pattern, etc., affects not only the combination of polymer chains and the bond strength of different fibers but also the manufacturing efficiency and mechanical and thermal properties of the printed material. With the aim of comprehending the effect of the 3D printing process method to the material nature, this Special Issue of Polymers invites scholars’ contributions on multiple aspects, including formulations and experimental analyses to discuss the mechanical, phase and chemical behavior of 3D-printed polymers and polymer composites in different fields, such as traditional manufacturing, aerospace, and biological or medical applications.

Prof. Dr. Minghsien Hsueh
Prof. Dr. Lavinia Cosmina Ardelean
Guest Editors

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Keywords

3D printing
high performance polymers
thermoplastic elastomer
thermoplastic polyurethane
silicone
polyetheretherketone
thermosetting composites
thermal cure cyanate ester
mechanical properties
electrical properties
fused deposition modeling
PEEK composite

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Published Papers (7 papers)

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Research

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16 pages, 2171 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Fused Deposition Modelling 3D-Printed Gastro-Retentive Floating Device for Propranolol Hcl Tablets

by Abdulsalam A. Alqahtani, Abdul Aleem Mohammed, Farhat Fatima and Mohammed Muqtader Ahmed

Polymers 2023, 15(17), 3554; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym15173554 - 26 Aug 2023

Cited by 11 | Viewed by 1824

Abstract

Three-dimensional printing has revolutionized drug manufacturing and has provided a solution to the limitations associated with the conventional manufacturing method by designing complex drug delivery systems with customized drug release profiles for personalized therapies. The present investigation aims to design a gastric floating tablet with prolonged gastric floating time and sustained drug release profile. In the present study, a gastro retentive floating device (GRFD) was designed and fabricated using a fused deposition modelling (FDM)-based 3D printing technique. This device acts as a multifunctional dosage form exhibiting prolonged gastric retention time and sustained drug release profile with improved oral bioavailability in the upper gastrointestinal tract. Commercial polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and polylactic acid (PLA) filaments were used to design GRFD, which was comprised of dual compartments. The outer sealed compartment acts as an air-filled chamber that imparts buoyancy to the device and the inner compartment is filled with a commercial propranolol hydrochloride immediate-release tablet. The device is designed as a round-shaped shell with a central opening of varying size (1 mm, 2 mm, 3 mm, and 4 mm), which acts as a drug release window. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) images were used to determine morphological characterization. The in vitro buoyancy and drug release were evaluated using the USP type II dissolution apparatus. All the designed GRFDs exhibit good floating ability and sustained drug release profiles. GRFDs fabricated using PLA filament show maximum buoyancy (>24 h) and sustained drug release for up to 10 h. The floating ability and drug release from the developed devices were governed by the drug release window opening size and the filament material affinity towards the gastric fluid. The designed GRFDs show great prospects in modifying the drug release characteristics and could be applied to any conventional immediate-release product. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue High-Performance 3D Printing Polymers)

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11 pages, 1709 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Using Peek as a Framework Material for Maxillofacial Silicone Prosthesis: An In Vitro Study

by Pinar Cevik, Arzu Zeynep Yildirim, Emine Hulya Demir Sevinc, Aykut Gonder and Sudarat Kiat-Amnuay

Polymers 2023, 15(12), 2694; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym15122694 - 15 Jun 2023

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2192

Abstract

There are often bonding problems between acrylic resins and silicone. PEEK (polyetheretherketone), which is a high-performance polymer, has great potential for the implant, and fixed or removable prosthodontics. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of different surface treatments on PEEK to be bonded to maxillofacial silicone elastomers. A total of 48 specimens were fabricated from either PEEK or PMMA (Polymethylmethacrylate) (n = 8). PMMA specimens acted as a positive control group. PEEK specimens were divided into five study groups as surface treatments as control PEEK, silica-coating, plasma etching, grinding, or nano-second fiber laser. Surface topographies were evaluated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). A platinum-primer was used on top of all specimens including control groups prior to silicone polymerization. The peel bond strength of the specimens to a platinum-type silicone elastomer was tested at a cross-head speed of 5 mm/min. The data were statistically analyzed (α = 0.05). The control PEEK group showed the highest bond strength (p < 0.05) among the groups. No statistical difference was found between control PEEK, grinding, or plasma etching groups (p > 0.05). The lowest bond strength was seen in the laser group, which was not statistically different from silica-coating (p > 0.05), and statistically different from control PEEK, grinding, or plasma groups (p < 0.05). Positive control PMMA specimens had statistically lower bond strength than either control PEEK or plasma etching groups (p < 0.05). All specimens exhibited adhesive failure after a peel test. The study results indicate that PEEK could serve as a potential alternative substructure for implant-retained silicone prostheses. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue High-Performance 3D Printing Polymers)

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12 pages, 2457 KiB

Open AccessArticle

3D Printed Supercapacitor Exploiting PEDOT-Based Resin and Polymer Gel Electrolyte

by Valentina Bertana, Giorgio Scordo, Elena Camilli, Limeng Ge, Pietro Zaccagnini, Andrea Lamberti, Simone Luigi Marasso and Luciano Scaltrito

Polymers 2023, 15(12), 2657; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym15122657 - 12 Jun 2023

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2233

Abstract

Renewable energy-based technologies and increasing IoT (Internet of Things) objects population necessarily require proper energy storage devices to exist. In the view of customized and portable devices, Additive Manufacturing (AM) techniques offer the possibility to fabricate 2D to 3D features for functional applications. Among the different AM techniques extensively explored to produce energy storage devices, direct ink writing is one of the most investigated, despite the poor achievable resolution. Herein, we present the development and characterization of an innovative resin which can be employed in a micrometric precision stereolithography (SL) 3D printing process for the fabrication of a supercapacitor (SC). Poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT), a conductive polymer, was mixed with poly(ethylene glycol) diacrylate (PEGDA), to get a printable and UV curable conductive composite material. The 3D printed electrodes were electrically and electrochemically investigated in an interdigitated device architecture. The electrical conductivity of the resin falls within the range of conductive polymers with 200 mS/cm and the 0.68 µWh/cm² printed device energy density falls within the literature range. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue High-Performance 3D Printing Polymers)

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10 pages, 3592 KiB

Open AccessArticle

An Investigation on the Hardness of Polylactic Acid Parts Fabricated via Fused Deposition Modeling

by Yu-Shan Zeng, Ming-Hsien Hsueh, Chao-Jung Lai, Te-Ching Hsiao, Chieh-Yu Pan, Wen-Chen Huang, Chih-Hao Chang and Shi-Hao Wang

Polymers 2022, 14(14), 2789; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym14142789 - 8 Jul 2022

Cited by 12 | Viewed by 2422

Abstract

This paper investigated the hardness property of the fused deposition modeling (FDM)-printed PLA samples via different process parameters of printing and raster angles. The hardness data were sampled from the flat and edge surfaces of the samples. In addition, the effect of hardness characters after the ultraviolet (UV) curing process was analyzed. Furthermore, this research found that the printing and raster angles significantly affected the hardness value of the PLA part, which slightly increased after the UV irradiation. Moreover, the results of this study will provide a reference for the field of FDM application. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue High-Performance 3D Printing Polymers)

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23 pages, 39270 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Effect of Process Parameters on the Performance of Drop-On-Demand 3D Inkjet Printing: Geometrical-Based Modeling and Experimental Validation

by Ahmed Elkaseer, Stella Schneider, Yaqi Deng and Steffen G. Scholz

Polymers 2022, 14(13), 2557; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym14132557 - 23 Jun 2022

Cited by 17 | Viewed by 4472

Abstract

As additive manufacturing has evolved, 3D inkjet printing (IJP) has become a promising alternative manufacturing method able to manufacture functional multi-material parts in a single process. However, issues with part quality in terms of dimensional errors and lack of precision still restrict its industrial and commercial applications. This study aims at improving the dimensional accuracy of 3D IJP parts by developing an optimization-oriented simulation tool of droplet behavior during the drop-on-demand 3D IJP process. The simulation approach takes into consideration the effect of droplet volume, droplet center-to-center distance, coverage percentage of jetted droplets, the contact angle of the ink on the solid substrate and coalescence performance of overlapping droplets, in addition to the number of printed layers. Following the development of the simulation tool using MATLAB, its feasibility was experimentally validated and the results showed a good agreement with a maximum deviation of 2.25% for horizontal features. In addition, the simulated horizontal features are compared with the results of “Inkraster” software, which also illustrates droplet behavior, however, only in 2D. For vertical features, a dial gauge indicator is used to measure the sample height, and the validation results show that the simulation tool can predicate the height of the sample with an average error of 10.89% for a large droplet diameter and 8.09% for a small diameter. The simulation results were found to be in a good agreement with the dimensions of the printed parts. The developed tool was then used to elucidate the effect of resolution of processed TIFF image and droplet diameter on the dimensional accuracy of 3D IJP parts. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue High-Performance 3D Printing Polymers)

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14 pages, 2599 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Effects of Disinfection and Steam Sterilization on the Mechanical Properties of 3D SLA- and DLP-Printed Surgical Guides for Orthodontic Implant Placement

by Silvia Izabella Pop, Mircea Dudescu, Sorin Gheorghe Mihali, Mariana Păcurar and Dana Cristina Bratu

Polymers 2022, 14(10), 2107; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym14102107 - 21 May 2022

Cited by 12 | Viewed by 2875

Abstract

Three-dimensional printed surgical guides increase the precision of orthodontic mini-implant placement. The purpose of this research was to investigate the effects of disinfection and of two types of autoclave sterilization on the mechanical properties of 3D printed surgical guides obtained via the SLA (stereolithography) and DLP (digital light processing) printing methods. A total of 96 standard specimens (48 SLA and 48 DLP) were printed to analyze the tensile and flexural properties of the materials. A total of 80 surgical guide (40 SLA and 40 DLP) specimens from each printing method were classified into four groups: CG (control group); G1, disinfected with 4% Gigasept (Gigasept Instru AF; Schülke & Mayer Gmbh, Norderstedt, Germany); G2, autoclave-sterilized (121 °C); and G3, autoclave-sterilized (134 °C). Significant differences in the maximum compressive load were determined between the groups comprising the DLP-(p < 0.001) and the SLA- (p < 0.001) printed surgical guides. Groups G2 (p = 0.001) and G3 (p = 0.029) showed significant parameter modifications compared with the CG. Disinfection with 4% Gigasept (Gigasept Instru AF; Schülke & Mayer Gmbh, Norderstedt, Germany) is suitable both for SLA- and DLP-printed surgical guides. Heat sterilization at both 121 °C and 134 °C modified the mechanical properties of the surgical guides. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue High-Performance 3D Printing Polymers)

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Review

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24 pages, 2910 KiB

Open AccessReview

Additive Manufactured Polymers in Dentistry, Current State-of-the-Art and Future Perspectives-A Review

by Codruta Victoria Tigmeanu, Lavinia Cosmina Ardelean, Laura-Cristina Rusu and Meda-Lavinia Negrutiu

Polymers 2022, 14(17), 3658; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym14173658 - 3 Sep 2022

Cited by 26 | Viewed by 6009

Abstract

3D-printing application in dentistry not only enables the manufacture of patient-specific devices and tissue constructs, but also allows mass customization, as well as digital workflow, with predictable lower cost and rapid turnaround times. 4D printing also shows a good impact in dentistry, as it can produce dynamic and adaptable materials, which have proven effective in the oral environment, under its continuously changing thermal and humidity conditions. It is expected to further boost the research into producing a whole tooth, capable to harmoniously integrate with the surrounding periodontium, which represents the ultimate goal of tissue engineering in dentistry. Because of their high versatility associated with the wide variety of available materials, additive manufacturing in dentistry predominantly targets the production of polymeric constructs. The aim of this narrative review is to catch a glimpse of the current state-of-the-art of additive manufacturing in dentistry, and the future perspectives of this modern technology, focusing on the specific polymeric materials. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue High-Performance 3D Printing Polymers)

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