scholarly journals Recycling of Selective Laser Sintering Waste Nylon Powders into Fused Filament Fabrication Parts Reinforced with Mg Particles

Polymers ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (13) ◽  
pp. 2046
Author(s):  
Mohammad Uddin ◽  
Daniel Williams ◽  
Anton Blencowe

This paper presents recycling of selective laser sintering (SLS) waste nylon into printable filaments and parts reinforced with Mg particles. Waste nylon and waste–Mg powder mixture with 2%, 4%, and 8% Mg to nylon were extruded into the filaments. Moisture absorption, differential scanning calorimetry, and melt flow index experiments were conducted to determine the thermal characteristics, while tensile and flexural tests were conducted to evaluate mechanical properties and failure mechanisms. The results were compared with off-the-self (OTS) nylon. Waste powder was found to be extrudable and printable as FFF filament. Waste filament diameter closely matched standard filament size, while exhibiting reduced moisture absorption. High melting and crystallisation temperature for the waste nylon demonstrated a degradation of the plastic during the SLS process. Young’s modulus and ultimate tensile strength for the waste filament increased by 1.6-fold compared to that for OTS, while Mg-composite filament surpassed the waste and OTS. Waste and Mg composite dog bone results showed an increase in strength and stiffness, but the ductility deteriorated. Both flexural strength and modulus for the waste nylon increased by 13% and 26%, respectively, over OTS, and the addition of Mg enhanced flexural strength by up to 5-fold at 8% Mg over the waste. Printed surface topography demonstrated that the waste and Mg composite filaments can print the parts with desired geometric shapes and acceptable surface texture. The findings showed that recycling waste SLS powder into FFF prints would be a viable and useful alternative to disposal, given its abundance.

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
pp. 14
Author(s):  
Fredrick Mulinge Mwania ◽  
Maina Maringa ◽  
Jacobus G. van der Walt

Additive manufacturing (AM), is one of the key components of the 4th industrial revolution. Polymer laser sintering (PLS) is a subset of AM that is commonly used to process polymers, and which achieves good surface finish, good mechanical properties of finished products and for which there is no need for support structures. However, the requirements for polymeric powder for PLS are strident. Moreover, PLS subjects polymeric feed powders to high temperatures that lead to degradation of their thermal, rheological, and physical properties and is thus an impediment to their recyclability. Therefore, it is imperative to investigate the degree of polymer degradation or aging before re-using the material. This paper reviews the common techniques that are employed to characterize the suitability of polymeric powders for use and re-use in the PLS process. These include, but are not limited to, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), laser diffraction analysis, gas pycnometry, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and melt flow index (MFI) testing.


2015 ◽  
Vol 667 ◽  
pp. 320-325 ◽  
Author(s):  
De Jin Zhao ◽  
Yan Ling Guo ◽  
Wen Long Song ◽  
Zhang Hui ◽  
Zhi Xiang Yu

Bamboo flour is a kind of a cheap reproducible natural plant powder. The polyamide hot melt adhesive (polyamide) is good bamboo adhesives. The bamboo flour/polyamide blend is prepared through mechanical mixing method. The powder bed preheating temperature of the laser sintering processing and the processing parameters of bamboo flour/polyamide blend are determined through the differential scanning calorimetry method (DSC method) and single layer sintering experiment. The mechanical testing parts are successfully fabricated by selective laser sintering using the bamboo flour/polyamide blend of 25/75 (wt/wt). In this series of experiments, the average tensile strength, flexural strength and impact strength of 5.9Mpa、11.5Mpa and 4.5KJ/m2 are obtained when the laser power is 11W, scan spacing is 0.1mm, the thickness of a layer is 0.1mm and scanning speed is 2000mm/s. The tensile strength and flexural strength of the SLS specimens are improved through wax infiltrating process, while the average impact strength of the wax-infiltrated specimens decreases compared with the SLS specimens processed under the same set of parameters. Bamboo flour/polyamide composite powder is new laser sintering with good forming property and low cost.


Membranes ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 390
Author(s):  
Fernando Luiz Lavoie ◽  
Marcelo Kobelnik ◽  
Clever Aparecido Valentin ◽  
Érica Fernanda da Silva Tirelli ◽  
Maria de Lurdes Lopes ◽  
...  

High-density polyethylene (HDPE) geomembranes are polymeric geosynthetic materials usually applied as a liner in environmental facilities due to their good mechanical properties, good welding conditions, and excellent chemical resistance. A geomembrane’s field performance is affected by different conditions and exposures, including ultraviolet radiation, thermal and oxidative exposure, and chemical contact. This article presents an experimental study with a 1.0 mm-thick HDPE virgin geomembrane exposed by the Xenon arc weatherometer for 2160 h and the ultraviolet fluorescent weatherometer for 8760 h to understand the geomembrane’s behavior under ultraviolet exposure. The evaluation was performed using the melt flow index (MFI) test, oxidative-induction time (OIT) tests, tensile test, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) analysis, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) analysis. The sample exposed in the Xenon arc equipment showed a tendency to increase the MFI values during the exposure time. This upward trend may indicate morphological changes in the polymer. The tensile behavior analysis showed a tendency of the sample to lose ductility, without showing brittle behavior. The samples’ OIT test results under both device exposures showed faster antioxidant depletion for the standard OIT test than the high-pressure OIT test. The DSC and FTIR analyses did not demonstrate the polymer’s changes.


Polymers ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (13) ◽  
pp. 2134
Author(s):  
Sandra Paszkiewicz ◽  
Izabela Irska ◽  
Iman Taraghi ◽  
Elżbieta Piesowicz ◽  
Jakub Sieminski ◽  
...  

The effect of the presence of halloysite nanotubes (HNTs) and silane-treated alumina trihydrate (ATH-sil) nanofillers on the mechanical, thermal, and flame retardancy properties of ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA) copolymer/low-density polyethylene (LDPE) blends was investigated. Different weight percentages of HNT and ATH-sil nanoparticles, as well as the hybrid system of those nanofillers, were melt mixed with the polymer blend (reference sample) using a twin-screw extruder. The morphology of the nanoparticles and polymer compositions was studied using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS). The mechanical properties, hardness, water absorption, and melt flow index (MFI) of the compositions were assessed. The tensile strength increases as a function of the amount of HNT nanofiller; however, the elongation at break decreases. In the case of the hybrid system of nanofillers, the compositions showed superior mechanical properties. The thermal properties of the reference sample and those of the corresponding sample with nanofiller blends were studied using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). Two peaks were observed in the melting and crystallization temperatures. This shows that the EVA/LDPE is an immiscible polymer blend. The thermal stability of the blends was improved by the presence of HNTs and ATH-sil nanoparticles. Thermal degradation temperatures were shifted to higher values by the presence of hybrid nanofillers. Finally, the flammability of the compositions was assessed. Flammability as reflected by the limiting oxygen index (OI) was increased by the presence of HNT and ATH-sil nanofiller and a hybrid system of the nanoparticles.


Materials ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (5) ◽  
pp. 1242
Author(s):  
Olga Mysiukiewicz ◽  
Paulina Kosmela ◽  
Mateusz Barczewski ◽  
Aleksander Hejna

Investigations related to polymer/metal composites are often limited to the analysis of the electrical and thermal conductivity of the materials. The presented study aims to analyze the impact of aluminum (Al) filler content (from 1 to 20 wt%) on the rarely investigated properties of composites based on the high-density polyethylene (HDPE) matrix. The crystalline structure, rheological (melt flow index and oscillatory rheometry), thermal (differential scanning calorimetry), as well as static (tensile tests, hardness, rebound resilience) and dynamic (dynamical mechanical analysis) mechanical properties of composites were investigated. The incorporation of 1 and 2 wt% of aluminum filler resulted in small enhancements of mechanical properties, while loadings of 5 and 10 wt% provided materials with a similar performance to neat HDPE. Such results were supported by the lack of disturbances in the rheological behavior of composites. The presented results indicate that a significant content of aluminum filler may be introduced into the HDPE matrix without additional pre-treatment and does not cause the deterioration of composites’ performance, which should be considered beneficial when engineering PE/metal composites.


2018 ◽  
Vol 24 (5) ◽  
pp. 813-820 ◽  
Author(s):  
Junjie Wu ◽  
Xiang Xu ◽  
Zhihao Zhao ◽  
Minjie Wang ◽  
Jie Zhang

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effect of selective laser sintering (SLS) method on morphology and performance of polyamide 12. Design/methodology/approach Crystallization behavior is critical to the properties of semi-crystalline polymers. The crystallization condition of SLS process is much different from others. The morphology of polyamide 12 produced by SLS technology was investigated using scanning electron microscopy, polarized light microscopy, differential scanning calorimetry, X-ray diffraction and wide-angle X-ray diffraction. Findings Too low fill laser power brought about bad fusion of powders, while too high energy input resulted in bad performance due to chain scission of macromolecules. There were three types of crystal in the raw powder material, denoted as overgrowth crystal, ring-banded spherulite and normal spherulite. Originality/value In this work, SLS samples with different sintering parameters, as well as compression molding sample for the purpose of comparison, were made to study the morphology and crystal structure of sintered PA12 in detail.


2015 ◽  
Vol 30 (7) ◽  
pp. 986-1002 ◽  
Author(s):  
MR Islam ◽  
A Gupta ◽  
M Rivai ◽  
MDH Beg

Composites were prepared from recycled polypropylene (RPP), oil palm empty fruit bunch (EFB) and/or glass fibre (GF) using extrusion and injection moulding techniques. Two types of maleic anhydride-grafted polypropylene such as Polybond 3200 and Fusabond P 613 were used to improve the interfacial adhesion between fibres and matrix. The EFB: GF ratio was fixed as 70:30 and fibre loading was considered as 40 wt%. Microwave was used to treat the EFB fibre, which was soaked in a fixed mass concentration (12.5%) of alkali solution at different temperatures (70, 80 and 90°C) for a fixed period of time (60 min) and for different times (60, 90 and 120 min) at a fixed temperature (90°C). A magnetron controller was developed to control the time and temperature accurately for the treatment of fibre. Various characterization techniques such as density, melt flow index, tensile, Izod impact, flexural, field-emission scanning electron microscopy and water uptake testing were performed for the composites. Besides, thermogravimetric analysis and differential scanning calorimetry were also used to evaluate the thermal and crystalline properties of the composites, respectively. Result analyses revealed that microwave-treated fibre-based composites showed improved mechanical and thermal properties. EFB fibres treated at 90°C for 90 min were found to be suitable for better reinforcement into the composite in terms of mechanical, thermal and crystalline properties. Moreover, onset degradation temperature and water absorption properties were also found to be changed apparently due to treatment.


2014 ◽  
Vol 679 ◽  
pp. 92-100
Author(s):  
Elaine Kenny ◽  
Declan M. Devine ◽  
Clement L. Higginbotham ◽  
Luke M. Geever

There is an urgent and unmet requirement for biocompatible and biodegradable implants that gradually resorb when implanted in vivo. This study examines the potential of melt extruded thermoplastics polyethylene oxide (PEO) and polycaprolactone (PCL) in the area of regenerative medicine. Various ratios of PEO and PCL were melt blended and analysed in order to obtain an optimised breakdown rate. Subsequently the effect of varying the molecular weight of PCL using a constant molecular weight PEO was also examined. Samples were characterised using melt flow index (MFI), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and breakdown analysis. It was found that by altering both the concentrations of PEO/PCL and the molecular weight of PCL, melt viscosity, breakdown rate and thermal properties could be modulated to produce potential implant materials with a tailored breakdown rate.


Author(s):  
Rupinder Singh ◽  
Gurchetan Singh ◽  
Jaskaran Singh ◽  
Ranvijay Kumar ◽  
Md Mustafizur Rahman ◽  
...  

In this experimental study, a composite of poly-ether-ketone-ketone by reinforcement of hydroxyapatite and chitosan has been prepared for possible applications as orthopaedic scaffolds. Initially, different weight percentages of hydroxyapatite and chitosan were reinforced in the poly-ether-ketone-ketone matrix and tested for melt flow index in order to check the flowability of different compositions/proportions. Suitable compositions revealed by the melt flow index test were then taken forward for the extrusion of filament required for fused deposition modelling. For thermomechanical investigations, Taguchi-based design of experiments has been used with input variables in the extrusion process as follows: temperature, load applied and different composition/proportions. The specimens in the form of feedstock filament produced by the extrusion process were made to undergo tensile testing. The specimens were also inspected by differential scanning calorimetry and photomicrographs. Finally, the specimen showing the best performance from the thermomechanical viewpoint has been selected to extrude the filament for the fused deposition modelling process.


Polymers ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 101 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sithiprumnea Dul ◽  
Luiz Gustavo Ecco ◽  
Alessandro Pegoretti ◽  
Luca Fambri

The present work reports on the production and characterization of acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) hybrid nanocomposite filaments incorporating graphene nanoplatelets (GNPs) and carbon nanotubes (CNTs) suitable for fused filament fabrication (FFF). At first, nanocomposites with a total nanofiller content of GNP and/or CNT of 6 wt.% and a GNP/CNT relative percentage ratio of 0, 10, 30, 50, 70, and 100 were produced by melt compounding and compression molding. Their mechanical, electrical resistivity, and electromagnetic interference shielding effectiveness (EMI SE) properties were evaluated. The hybrid nanocomposites showed a linear increase in modulus and decrease in strength as a function of GNP content; on the other hand, the addition of CNT in hybrid nanocomposites determined a positive increase in electrical conductivity, but a potentially critical decrease of melt flow index. Due to the favorable compromise between processability and enhancement of performance (i.e., mechanical and electrical properties), the hybrid composition of 50:50 GNP/CNT was selected as the most suitable for the filament production of 6 wt.% carbonaceous nanocomposites. EMI SE of ABS-filled single CNT and hybrid GNP/CNT nanofillers obtained from compression molding reached the requirement for applications (higher than −20 dB), while slightly lower EMI SE values (in the range −12/−16 dB) were obtained for FFF parts dependent on the building conditions.


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