Nanocomposites with Optimized Polytetrafluoroethylene Content as a Reinforcement Agent in PA12 and PLA for Material Extrusion Additive Manufacturing

Nectarios Vidakis; Markos Petousis; Amalia Moutsopoulou; Vassilis Papadakis; Mariza Spiridaki; Nikolaos Mountakis; Chrysa Charou; Dimitris Tsikritzis; Emmanuel Maravelakis

doi:10.3390/polym15132786

Polymers (Jun 2023)

Nanocomposites with Optimized Polytetrafluoroethylene Content as a Reinforcement Agent in PA12 and PLA for Material Extrusion Additive Manufacturing

Nectarios Vidakis,
Markos Petousis,
Amalia Moutsopoulou,
Vassilis Papadakis,
Mariza Spiridaki,
Nikolaos Mountakis,
Chrysa Charou,
Dimitris Tsikritzis,
Emmanuel Maravelakis

Affiliations

Nectarios Vidakis: Department of Mechanical Engineering, Hellenic Mediterranean University, 71410 Heraklion, Greece
Markos Petousis: Department of Mechanical Engineering, Hellenic Mediterranean University, 71410 Heraklion, Greece
Amalia Moutsopoulou: Department of Mechanical Engineering, Hellenic Mediterranean University, 71410 Heraklion, Greece
Vassilis Papadakis: Department of Industrial Design and Production Engineering, University of West Attica, 12244 Athens, Greece
Mariza Spiridaki: Department of Mechanical Engineering, Hellenic Mediterranean University, 71410 Heraklion, Greece
Nikolaos Mountakis: Department of Mechanical Engineering, Hellenic Mediterranean University, 71410 Heraklion, Greece
Chrysa Charou: Department of Mechanical Engineering, Hellenic Mediterranean University, 71410 Heraklion, Greece
Dimitris Tsikritzis: Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering, Hellenic Mediterranean University, 71410 Heraklion, Greece
Emmanuel Maravelakis: Department of Electronic Engineering, Hellenic Mediterranean University (HMU), 73133 Chania, Greece

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/polym15132786
Journal volume & issue: Vol. 15, no. 13
p. 2786

Abstract

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Herein, polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) is evaluated as a reinforcement agent in material extrusion (MEX) additive manufacturing (AM), aiming to develop nanocomposites with enhanced mechanical performance. Loadings up to 4.0 wt.% were introduced as fillers of polylactic acid (PLA) and polyamide 12 (PA12) matrices. Filaments for MEX AM were prepared to produce corresponding 3D-printed samples. For the thorough characterization of the nanocomposites, a series of standardized mechanical tests were followed, along with AFM, TGA, Raman spectroscopy, EDS, and SEM analyses. The results showed an improved mechanical response for filler concentrations between 2.0 and 3.0 wt.%. The enhancement for the PLA/PTFE 2.0 wt.% in the tensile strength reached 21.1% and the modulus of elasticity 25.5%; for the PA12/PTFE 3.0 wt.%, 34.1%, and 41.7%, respectively. For PLA/PTFE 2.0 wt.%, the enhancement in the flexural strength reached 57.6% and the modulus of elasticity 25.5%; for the PA12/PTFE 3.0 wt.%, 14.7%, and 17.2%, respectively. This research enables the ability to deploy PTFE as a reinforcement agent in the PA12 and PLA thermoplastic engineering polymers in the MEX AM process, expanding the potential applications.

Published in Polymers

ISSN: 2073-4360 (Online)
Publisher: MDPI AG
Country of publisher: Switzerland
LCC subjects: Science: Chemistry: Organic chemistry
Website: http://www.mdpi.com/journal/polymers/

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