3D-printing of Polylactic acid/nano silica filament: Properties and Applications

Aboelenan, Ahmed Farouk; Algouz, Mona; Saleh, Neveen; Sorour, Manal

doi:10.21608/ftrj.2023.300614

3D-printing of Polylactic acid/nano silica filament: Properties and Applications

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

¹ Department of Printing, Publishing and Packaging - Faculty of Applied Arts - Helwan University- Egypt

² Department of Printing, Publishing and Packaging - Faculty of Applied Arts - Helwan University, Egypt

³ Food Engineering and Packaging Department, Food Technology Research Institute, Agricultural Research Center, Giza, Egypt od Technology Research Institute, ARC

10.21608/ftrj.2023.300614

Abstract

The objective of this work to functionalize polylactic acid (PLA/nano silica) composite to produce environmentally ‎friendly filament using it in Polylactic acid (PLA) and nanosilica with different concentrations (1, 2%) were prepared to produce PLA/nanocomposites. PLA, PLA/nanosilica (1% and 2%) filaments were produced using a single screw extruder. Tensile, flexural, and thermal properties were investigated; a Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) test was also used to verify PLA and PLA/nanosilica structure. Finally antibacterial properties of the produced nanocomposites were investigated to evaluate their performance against Staphylococcus aureus (S. Aureus) and Gram-negative Escherichia coli (E. Coli). The results revealed that PLA/nanosilica (1%) had the better mechanical and thermal properties. The PLA/nanosilica (1%) filament sample was used in 3D printing (3DP) applications for producing different samples (tooth brush case and pill organizer).

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