Development of Multifunctional CNTs Reinforced PEI Filaments for Fused Deposition Modeling

What is it about?

Various fractions of CNTs/PEI nanocomposite filaments were fabricated by melt compounding, which were completely solvent-free processes, for later use in additive manufacturing to create multifunctional 3D structures. Applying both twin and single screw extrusions in CNTs/PEI nanocomposite filament resulted in uniform dispersion and alignment of CNTs in PEI matrix, which contributes positively to tensile performance and percolation threshold at low nanofiller content. However, reduction in CNTs length was also observed due to applied high shear stress during melt compounding. CNTs presence led to increase in stiffness and reduce elongation at break %. Furthermore, surface conductivity of PEI was markedly incremented by CNTs incorporation.

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