1. Carbon Nanomaterial Composites Manufactured with UV-assisted 3-D Printing
Kelsey Harlow (Faculty Advisor: Dr. Gurpreet Singh)
Mechanical and Nuclear Engineering Department, Kansas State University, Manhattan, Kansas, USA
Abstract Manufacturing and Testing Dog-Bone Samples
What are Carbon Nanomaterials?
Acknowledgment and Financial Support: Kelsey Harlow would like to thank Weston Grove and Dr. Meng Zhang for help with UV 3-D printing and tensile testing. Thanks are also due to Dr. Bette Grauer and Dr.
Gurpreet Singh for financial support to Kelsey Harlow
Plastics in general are very weak in comparison to metals and ceramics. In addition plastics have lower
melting points and they are poor conductors of heat and electricity. However, plastics are much lighter
than other engineering materials and much more economical to manufacture.
The purpose of this research is to study the effect of the addition of carbon nanomaterials (carbon black,
nanotubes, fullerenes, and graphene), generally known for their exceptional mechanical and electrical
properties, to plastics by use of UV-assisted 3-D printing will produce a composite with the economic
component of plastic and the favorable engineering properties of carbon nanomaterials.
What is the Purpose of this Research?
High mechanical strength and stiffness, and low density of graphene make it a promising candidate for
making polymer matrix composite materials. To this end several groups have demonstrated fabrication
and mechanical property enhancement in epoxy composite prepared by mechanical mixing of graphene
with liquid resin followed by casting and curing in a mold. However, studies related to 3-D printing or
scalable manufacturing of complex graphene/epoxy are rarely reported mostly due to challenges
associated with preparation of stable polymer/graphene dispersions, photopolymerization, and poor
control over distribution of graphene in the composite part.
Photos from left to right
1. Sonicate 50 mg Carbon Black 100 ml FormLabs ® Clear Resin for 25 minutes
2. Upload Model in Software from SolidWorks
3. Load composite resin into tray. Set platform in composite resin and press the start button.
4. Clip finished product supports and sand off small bumps on support edges.
5. Static tensile test and record data MS Excel.
Future Work
Future work will involve more tensile tests with varying
concentrations of Carbon Black, Fullerenes, Nanotubes, and
Graphene sheets using the clear resin as a base. After tensile
test are complete, then bending and shear tests could be
conducted to determine even more potential property benefits
of the proposed composite. Further tests could include testing
electrical conductivity of the composite due to carbon
nanomaterial’s exceptionally high electrical conductivity.
Results of Tensile Testing
Focused on Young’s Modulus for engineering application
Conclusion: Addition of 50 (w/v %) Carbon Black
nanomaterials improved the polymer’s Young’s modulus by
~ 36%.
Top Graph : All Carbon Black Samples vs Blank Clear Resin Sample
Top Right Graph : Calculated Young’s Modulus of Blank Sample
Right Graph: Calculated Young’s Modulus of Carbon Black Samples
From left to right : Carbon Black, NanoTubes, Fullerenes, Graphene Layers
How does UV assisted 3-D Printing Works?
Tray
UV Shield
Progress Monitor
Platform Tower
1. 5.4.3.2.
Platform
SupportsPrinting Layer by Layer
Max Fill Line
UV Path
Mirror
Bounces straight up
to bottom of resin tank
UV light inside
Bounces off series
of small mirrors
Digital camera images of 3-D printer with parts labeled