REINFORCING 3D PRINTED POLYMER WITH STAINLESS STEEL
As part of an independent Study in the I-Form lab for advanced manufacturing research at University College Dublin, I worked to print continuous steel fiber ex-situ in a nylon matrix and observe its material characteristics.
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In order to make the material, I first extruded the filament using a 3Devo Filament Maker (3Devo). To understand the extrusion process, I started by extruding PLA, PLA with SSF, and Nylon. Next, Nylon with Cotton was extruded to help determine the extrusion parameters needed to extrude Nylon with a stainless steel fiber bundle (SSF) before I ultimately extruded the Nylon with SSF.
In the end, a SSF bundle was successfully embedded into the center of the Nylon matrix material to produce a 3D printable filament with a diameter of approximately 0.5 mm and a volume fraction of 1.6%. The material was then 3D printed resulting in good matrix impregnation into the fiber bundles.
