REACTIVE POLYMER FUSED DEPOSITION MANUFACTURING

• US 20150291833A1
• Filed: 04/14/2014
• Published: 10/15/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 04/14/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: UT-Battelle LLC
• Original Assignee: UT-Battelle LLC
• Inventors: Kunc, Vlastimil, Rios, Orlando, Love, Lonnie J., Duty, Chad E., Johs, Alexander
• Granted Patent: US 9,650,537 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 64/106 using only liquids or viscous materials, e.g. depositing a continuous bead of viscous material
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 64/112 using individual droplets, e.g. from jetting heads
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 64/118 using filamentary material being melted, e.g. fused deposition modelling [FDM]
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 64/165 using a combination of solid and fluid materials, e.g. a powder selectively bound by a liquid binder, catalyst, inhibitor or energy absorber
• CPC Class Codes: B29K 2101/00 Use of unspecified macromolecular compounds as moulding material use of unspecified rubbers B29K2021/00
• CPC Class Codes: B29L 2009/00 Layered products
• CPC Class Codes: B33Y 10/00 Processes of additive manufacturing
• CPC Class Codes: B33Y 80/00 Products made by additive manufacturing
• CPC Class Codes: C09D 163/00 Coating compositions based on epoxy resins; Coating compositions based on derivatives of epoxy resins

Abstract

Methods and compositions for additive manufacturing that include reactive or thermosetting polymers, such as urethanes and epoxies. The polymers are melted, partially cross-linked prior to the depositing, deposited to form a component object, solidified, and fully cross-linked. These polymers form networks of chemical bonds that span the deposited layers. Application of a directional electromagnetic field can be applied to aromatic polymers after deposition to align the polymers for improved bonding between the deposited layers.

Claims

1. A component manufactured using additive manufacturing comprising:

providing a supply of working material including a reactive polymer material;

depositing the working material in a desired position in a melted form during a build of the component; and

cross-linking the working material within the component.

2. The component manufactured according to the process of claim 1 wherein the polymer material comprises a hybrid polymer.

3. The component manufactured according to the process of claim 1 further comprising partially cross-linking the working material prior to the depositing.

4. The component manufactured according to the process of claim 1 further comprising solidifying the component prior to the cross-linking.

5. The component manufactured according to the process of claim 1 wherein the working material includes a rapid cross-linking agent and/or a latent cross-linking agent.

6. The component manufactured according to the process of claim 1 further comprising depositing the working material in a plurality of layers and the cross-linking forms chemical bonds across the plurality of layers.

7. The component manufactured according to the process of claim 1 wherein the supply of the working material comprises a reinforcement fiber.

8. The component manufactured according to the process of claim 1 further comprising applying a directional electromagnetic field to the deposited working material.

9. A process for manufacturing a component using additive manufacturing comprising the steps of:

melting a supply of polymer material;

depositing the polymer material in the melted form to form the component; and

cross-linking the working material within the component.

10. The process according to claim 9, further comprising adjusting the viscosity of the polymer material in the melted form for deposition.

11. The process according to claim 9, further comprising applying a directional electromagnetic field to the deposited polymer material before or during cross-linking.

12. The process according to claim 9, further comprising:

partially cross-linking the melted polymer material prior to the depositing;

solidifying the deposited polymer material; and

additionally cross-linking the solidified polymer material.

13. The process according to claim 12, wherein the polymer material includes a rapid cross-linking agent and a latent cross-linking agent.

14. The process according to claim 12, further comprising applying a directional electromagnetic field to the deposited polymer material during the solidifying and/or the additional cross-linking.

15. The component manufactured according to the process of claim 9 wherein the polymer material comprises a hybrid polymer.

16. The component manufactured according to the process of claim 9 further comprising depositing the polymer material in a plurality of layers and the cross-linking forms chemical bonds across the plurality of layers.

17. The component manufactured according to the process of claim 9 wherein the polymer material comprises a urethane and/or an epoxy.

18. The component manufactured according to the process of claim 9 wherein the polymer material comprises a reinforcement fiber.

19. The component manufactured according to the process of claim 9 further comprising aligning and curing the polymer material in an oriented nematic or smectic phase by applying a static magnetic field.

20. The component manufactured according to the process of claim 19 wherein the polymer material comprises a liquid crystalline aromatic epoxy.