Rheological characterization of complex fluids through a table-top 3D printer

3D printing is changing the way we conceive, design, and build 3D objects in mechanical, biomedical, aerospace, construction, automotive and maritime industries. In the current work, the nonlinear rheological behaviour of polymer melts is measured through a table-top 3D printer (3D RheoPrinter) that, smartly modified, allows inline investigation of viscosity, extrudate swell and melt fracture. By using a piezoresistive mini-transducer, the innovative system is designed to be applicable to all Fused Deposition Modelling (FDM) 3D printers by a simple and cost-effective modification of a state-of-art nozzle. The measurements of the nonlinear rheological behaviour are compared with traditional, rotational rheology. Two biodegradable polymers, i.e. polylactic acid and polycaprolactone, are investigated as model systems to test the 3D RheoPrinter. The results of the shear viscosity and the first normal stress difference coefficient, as function of shear rate, show a good agreement between the 3D RheoPrinter and rotational rheometer with an error of about 6 % for a confidence interval of 96 % . Moreover, the 3D RheoPrinter can still be used as 3D printer. In the last part of this work, it is presented a printing test for building 3D structures in which the results show controllable resolution by means of the measured rheological information such as the extrudate swell. The vision of this work is that an inline rheological characterization, possible with the developed 3D RheoPrinter, can enable automatic process optimization and quality assurance to the 3D printing community. The social and scientific impacts of this work are maximized by the cost-efficiency and simplicity of the design that makes it within reach of the general public. The 3D RheoPrinter opens for a rheological experimentation to a broad audience and it offers important insights to bring FDM to the next level of resolution.