Title: FRONTAL POLYMERIZATION FOR CONTINUOUS CARBON FIBER ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING

Authors: G. Esposito, G.P. Tandon, D. Butcher, H. Koerner, M. Flores

DOI: 10.33599/nasampe/s.23.0023

Abstract: Frontal polymerization describes a self-sustained polymerization process in which polymerization propagates in a localized reaction zone. This process proves immensely attractive for composite fabrication, as the time necessary to cure can be reduced to minutes. Additionally, frontal polymerization has great potential in complimenting additive manufacturing processes such as direct ink writing as a continuous cure synchronized to the printing speed can overcome issues such as sagging. To further study the incorporation of frontal polymerization into a continuous fiber printing process, a frontally polymerizable epoxy resin has been developed for UV initiation. Through frontal polymerization alone, full conversion was observed with a starting glass transition of 150°C. A stable front was reached with increasing volume of carbon fiber tow, revealing an increase in front velocity and decrease in front temperature with increasing carbon fiber content. Initial studies of incorporating high performance additives have been completed in order to increase the overall high temperature and fracture resistance of the base resin.

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Conference: SAMPE 2023

Publication Date: 2023/04/17

SKU: TP23-0000000023

Pages: 13

Price: $26.00