Multifunctional Medical Grade Resin with Enhanced Mechanical and Antibacterial Properties: The Effect of Copper Nano-Inclusions in Vat Polymerization (VPP) Additive Manufacturing

Abstract

Vat photopolymerization (VPP) is an additive manufacturing process commonly used in medical applications. This work aims, for the first time in the literature, to extend and enhance the performance of a commercial medical-grade resin for the VPP process, with the development of nanocomposites, using Copper (Cu) nanoparticles as the additive at two different concentrations. The addition of the Cu nanoparticles was expected to enhance the mechanical properties of the resin and to enable biocidal properties on the nanocomposites since Cu is known for its antibacterial performance. The effect of the Cu concentration was investigated. The nanocomposites were prepared with high-shear stirring. Specimens were 3D printed following international standards for mechanical testing. Their thermal and spectroscopic response was also investigated. The morphological characteristics were examined. The antibacterial performance was evaluated with an agar well diffusion screening process. The experimental results were analyzed with statistical modeling tools with two control parameters (three levels each) and eleven response parameters. Cu enhanced the mechanical properties in all cases studied. 0.5 wt.% Cu nanocomposite showed the highest improvement (approximately 11% in tensile and 10% in flexural strength). The antibacterial performance was sufficient against S. aureus and marginal against E. coli.

An Experimental Investigation about the Dimensional Accuracy and the Porosity of Copper-Filled PLA Fused Filament Fabrication Parts

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Hydroxyapatite-Resin Composites Produced by Vat Photopolymerization and Post-Processing via In Situ Hydrolysis of Alpha Tricalcium Phosphate

“…However, standard resins used in VPP printing result in printouts with poor mechanical properties that are unsuitable for structural applications. Consequently, efforts have been made to improve mechanical behavior by reinforcing the cured resins with additional phases, leading to the development of polymeric matrix composites [2,[4][5][6]. Nanofillers play a crucial role in reinforcing the matrix due to their high specific surface area, which creates a strong interphase with the matrix [6].…”