Sustainability is extremely important, with concern for and well-being of the environment central to all human endeavour. In this regard, the Centre for Advanced Materials Manufacturing and Design at the Newmarket Campus is involved in, among other things, research, and development in the broad area of composites made with natural materials. Such composites are suited for and find use in a host of applications, among them automobiles, aircraft, and buildings, to name a few.
3D printing of polymers and polymer blends is emerging as an innovative manufacturing technique due to potential benefits such as low cost, dimensional accuracy and tunability of mechanical properties. Although several blends were trialled to improve mechanical properties, only a certain degree of success could be achieved with biodegradable polymer blends, for example, Polylactic acid/Polybutylene adipate terephthalate (PLA/PBAT) blend. The main reason for the low impact strength of PLA/PBAT is the incompatibility between the PLA and PBAT phases. Studies have shown that the compatibility of the PLA/PBAT blend can be improved by adding a third polymer Polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) to form a ternary blend. Such polymer blends have high-impact strength; hence they can be suitable for 3D printing impact-resistant material.
Herein it is proposed to use such a ternary impact-resistant polymer blend to 3D print a robotic arm. The production of customised robotic arms through 3D printing will reduce production costs and material wastage. Such 3D-printed robotic arms are cheaper and lightweight, can be customised with complex geometry for various applications, including medical, industrial, and hazardous environments. The mechanical and other properties of the blend material can be tested, and finite element analysis used to determine the properties of the manufactured arm.
Undergraduate
As a result of this project, it is expected that a good understanding of polymers and polymer processing, and mechanical testing of polymer blends will be developed.
Students will gain knowledge about materials, processing techniques and experimental testing methods. They will learn how to (1) plan and conduct an experimental research programme, (2) use different machines and equipment, and (3) understand and interpret experimental results from the viewpoint of a research programme. In addition, interactions with other researchers including doctoral candidates and research fellows, would provide a valuable learning experience.
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CACM - Strength of Materials Lab (Newmarket 902 Lvl 3, Lab)