Digital Light Process 3D Printing of Magnetically Aligned Liquid Crystalline Elastomer Free–forms
- Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States); Univ. of Colorado, Boulder, CO (United States)
- Harvard Univ., Cambridge, MA (United States). Wyss Inst. For Biologically Inspired Engineering
- Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)
- Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States)
- Univ. of Colorado, Boulder, CO (United States)
- Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States); Oregon State Univ., Corvallis, OR (United States)
Liquid crystalline elastomers (LCEs) are anisotropic soft materials capable of large dimensional changes when subjected to a stimulus. The magnitude and directionality of the stimuli-induced thermomechanical response is associated with the alignment of the LCE. Recent reports detail the preparation of LCEs by additive manufacturing (AM) techniques, predominately using direct ink write printing. Another AM technique, digital light process (DLP) 3D printing, has generated significant interest as it affords LCE free-forms with high fidelity and resolution. However, one challenge of printing LCEs using vat polymerization methods such as DLP is enforcing alignment. Here, we document the preparation of aligned, main-chain LCEs via DLP 3D printing using a 100 mT magnetic field. Systematic examination isolates the contribution of magnetic field strength, alignment time, and build layer thickness on the degree of orientation in 3D printed LCEs. Informed by this fundamental understanding, DLP is used to print complex LCE free-forms with through-thickness variation in both spatial orientations. Further, the hierarchical variation in spatial orientation within LCE free-forms is used to produce objects that exhibit mechanical instabilities upon heating. DLP printing of aligned LCEs opens new opportunities to fabricate stimuli-responsive materials in form factors optimized for functional use in soft robotics and energy absorption.
- Research Organization:
- Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States); Sandia National Laboratories (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- National Science Foundation; USDOE Laboratory Directed Research and Development (LDRD) Program; USDOE National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA)
- Grant/Contract Number:
- AC52-07NA27344; NA0003525
- OSTI ID:
- 2527405
- Report Number(s):
- LLNL--JRNL-865208; 1099287
- Journal Information:
- Advanced Materials, Journal Name: Advanced Materials Journal Issue: 52 Vol. 36; ISSN 0935-9648
- Publisher:
- WileyCopyright Statement
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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