A research team from the University of California Santa Barbara and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) has developed a novel vat photopolymerization (VP) process that significantly simplifies the creation and removal of support structures in 3D printing. The approach uses a single photopolymer resin that can be selectively cured into two different material types, depending on the light used during the printing process.
VP is known for its high resolution and fast production speed, typically relying on ultraviolet (UV) light to solidify liquid resin. The new method adds visible light to the process and employs a custom resin formulation consisting of epoxy and acrylate monomers. A specially designed projection system can direct UV and visible light independently, at pixel-level resolution, using individually tiltable micromirrors.
Where the UV light hits, the epoxy monomers cure to form the permanent structure of the printed object. Where visible light is applied, the acrylate monomers solidify to create temporary support elements. These supports can be selectively dissolved in a sodium hydroxide solution after printing, leaving the main structure intact and eliminating the need for manual post-processing.
According to Maxim Shusteff of LLNL, the use of straightforward photochemistry provides a practical solution to a well-known issue in the production of complex geometries. Initial test prints included ball-in-cage structures and interlocked parts. In the future, the technique could be applied to the fabrication of micro-mechanical components, joints, or biomedical scaffolds.
“Vat photopolymerization is known for its fast and high-resolution printing, but one of the most nerve-wracking parts after printing is manually removing supports for intricate interlocking and overhang structures,” says LLNL’s Maxim Shusteff, who led the study along with LLNL’s Sijia Huang. “We are very excited that we can use simple chemistry to solve this issue.”
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