Rapid 3D‐Plastronics prototyping by selective metallization of 3D printed parts

Gerges, Tony; Semet, V.; Lombard, Philippe; Allard, Bruno; Cabrera, Michel

doi:10.1016/j.addma.2023.103673

Cited by 3 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 56 publications

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“…To address the poor conductivity of the conductive thermoplastic filaments, catalyst-embedded filaments were proposed for 3D-printed parts followed by electroless or electrodeposition. − This approach enabled area-selective metallization and led to a significant improvement in electrical conductivity (i.e., 44.4 × 10 6 S m –1 ) as compared to the bare carbon black filaments. Besides, laser-induced metallization was also proposed to achieve high-resolution conductive patterns on the 3D-printed polymers from Pd-embedded polymers. , Nevertheless, Pd is a rare and expensive catalyst material, which can limit the cost-effective and large-scale utilization of these techniques.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Selective Surface Metallization of 3D-Printed Polymers by Cold-Spray-Assisted Electroless Deposition

Akin,

Nath,

Jun

2023

ACS Appl. Electron. Mater.

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Selective surface metallization of insulating polymers is of particular interest in smart films, energy harvesting, and sensing applications. However, traditional polymer metallization techniques face challenges due to the need for environmentally hazardous pretreatment (e.g., strong acid etching) and costintensive palladium seeding processes, thereby limiting the largescale deployment of metallized polymers. With the advent of rapid prototyping, metallization on additively manufactured polymers drew attention in a variety of technological applications, as it enables the fabrication of low-cost electronic devices. In the current work, we deploy and evaluate a hybrid additive metallization route that can enable the fabrication of functional selective metallization on 3D-printed polymers in a rapid and eco-friendly methodology with improved electrical conductivity. The metallization route sequentially comprises (1) material extrusion 3D printing, (2) cold spray metallization, and (3) electroless deposition. The resulting metal (copper) layers on the polymer surfaces are characterized in terms of the microstructure, surface chemistry, wettability, and electrical conductivity. Notably, selective metallization with promising electrical conductivity (i.e., 6.47 × 10 6 S m −1 for ABS and 5.27 × 10 6 S m −1 for PLA parts) is achieved on both linear and curvilinear polymer surfaces. Moreover, strong adhesion between the metallized layer and the 3Dprinted structures was confirmed by adhesion tests. Detailed evaluation of the proposed hybrid metallization route unlocks great potential to advance the field of conductive surface metallization on 3D-printed polymers.

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