SBIR Phase I: Additive Manufacturing of Silicone Elastomers and Thermosets Using Freeform Reversible Embedding

SBIR 第一阶段：使用自由形式可逆嵌入增材制造有机硅弹性体和热固性材料

• 批准号: 2052214
• 负责人: Thomas Hinton
• 金额: $ 24.96万
• 依托单位: FLUIDFORM, INC.
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2021
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2021-05-01 至 2022-01-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2052214&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: SBIR; Phase; Additive; Manufacturing; Silicone; SBIR; Phase; Additive; Manufacturing; Silicone

The broader impact/commercial potential of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project is to radically expand the types of polymers that can be 3D printed. Thermosets such as silicones, epoxies, and urethanes are used across manufacturing because they have excellent chemical, physical, and mechanical properties, and they can be readily molded. The proposed technology will enable 3D printing of existing industrial thermosets without modifications using standard 3D printing technologies available in the market. The technology addresses an unmet need for industries including consumer electronics, automotive, aerospace, and medical device by enabling additive manufacturing of qualified thermoset materials for new applications such as improving the fit and comfort of wearable electronic devices, lightweighting mechanical components, and integrating sensors into flexible medical devices. This effort directly supports advancing national health and defense capabilities through new additive manufacturing capabilities.This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I is focused on 3D printing a wide range of previously unprintable or difficult-to-print thermally-cured, thermoset materials. The impact will be unlocking a method of 3D printing thermosets without geometric limits while maintaining dimensional accuracy across features as small as 50 µm, addressing unmet additive manufacturing needs within consumer electronics, automotive, aerospace, and medical device industries. While there are current 3D printers that can utilize photopolymerization to print specific resins, most engineering thermosets (e.g. silicones, epoxies, and urethanes) remain unprintable. This project will implement a scientific framework to understand polymer-solvent interactions during freeform reversible embedding of suspended hydrogels (FRESH) printing of thermoset inks within yield-stress support baths. In this process, liquid thermoset inks are extruded within a support bath where they are cured over time, making solubility, chemistry, and rheology critical success factors. Platinum-cured silicone is proposed as the initial candidate thermoset; the project will establish which block copolymers and solvents possess the right combination of solubility parameters to self-assemble into microgels that can be compacted to form the yield-stress support bath. FRESH printing process parameters will be optimized to achieve critical dimensional accuracy, resolution, fidelity, and mechanical properties of the printed parts.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

这项小型企业创新研究（SBIR）I阶段项目的更广泛的影响/商业潜力是从根本上扩展可以打印3D的聚合物的类型。在制造中使用了硅树脂，环氧树脂和氨基甲酸酯等热力器，因为它们具有出色的化学，物理和机械性能，并且可以容易地模制。拟议的技术将使用市场上可用的标准3D打印技术对现有工业热热器进行3D打印，而无需修改。该技术通过启用合格的热固性材料的额外制造来解决新应用，例如改善可穿戴电子设备的合格和舒适性，轻巧机械组件以及将传感器集成到柔性的医疗刀具中，从而满足了包括消费电子，汽车，航空航天和医疗设备在内的行业的需求。这项工作直接通过新的增材制造能力来支持推进国家健康和防御能力。该小型企业创新研究（SBIR）I阶段专注于3D打印多种以前无法打印的或难以打印的热固化的热软垫材料。影响将解锁3D打印热眠器的方法，而无需几何限制，同时保持小至50 µm的功能的尺寸精度，以​​解决消费电子，汽车，航空航天和医疗设备工业中未满足的其他制造需求。尽管当前的3D打印机可以利用光聚合来打印特定的树脂，但大多数工程热固性（例如，硅，环氧树脂和尿道烷）仍然无法打印。该项目将实施一个科学框架，以了解在自由形式可逆嵌入悬浮水凝胶（新鲜）在产量压力支撑浴缸内打印的热凝胶（新鲜）打印的聚合物 - 溶剂相互作用。在此过程中，将液体热固性油墨挤出在支撑浴中，随着时间的流逝，它们可以固化，使解决方案，化学和流变学关键成功因素。铂固化的有机硅被提出为初始候选热固性；该项目将确定哪种嵌段共聚物和解决方案具有溶液参数的正确组合，可以自组装到微凝胶中，可以压实以形成屈服压力支撑浴。将优化新的打印过程参数，以实现印刷零件的关键维度准确性，解决方案，忠诚度和机械性能。该奖项反映了NSF的法定任务，并被认为是通过基金会的智力优点和更广泛的影响来通过评估来获得的支持。