Publication detail

Effect of Heat Treatment on the Structure and Morphology of Silver-Coated ThreeDimensional Printed Flexible Polylactic Acid Thin Plates

F. M. Mwema, D. Sobola, A. D. Baruwa, and E. T. Akinlabi

Original Title

Effect of Heat Treatment on the Structure and Morphology of Silver-Coated ThreeDimensional Printed Flexible Polylactic Acid Thin Plates

Type

journal article in Web of Science

Language

English

Original Abstract

he micromorphology of three-dimensional (3D) printed silver/polylactic acid (PLA) exposed to heat treatment is reported. The PLA samples were printed through fused deposition modeling and then coated using a conductive silver paint. They were then heat treated in an electric fur nace at 5, 10, and 20 min at 100°C. The samples were then characterized using X-ray diffraction, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, low-resolution and high-resolution scanning electron micros copy, atomic force microscopy, and roughness analyses. The results revealed that there is trans formation of the structure and morphology of the silver/PLA samples on exposure to heat treatment at different times. On heat treatment, the PLA structure transforms from unstable δ state to thermally stable state (α). A slight shift of the 2θ for each peak was observed at heat treatment. There are shifts up to 0.7 eV on the binding energy of the Ag3d as shown by the X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analysis, indicating an enhancement of bonding of silver onto the PLA structure on thermal treatment. The surface appearance was described by root mean square roughness, mean roughness, skew, kurtosis, and fractal dimension. The inner structure of the samples is shown by scanning electron microscopy at cross sections. The morphology and topography on the surface of the silver/PLA samples indicate a considerable structure growth and adhesion between the silver and PLA. These results illustrate that in situ deposition of silver paint onto PLA substrate, and subsequent heat treatment can be explored as a viable process for enhancing metallization of 3D printed polymer parts for various applications.

Keywords

silver coating, polylactic acid, heat treatment, micromorphology, three-dimensional printing

Authors

F. M. Mwema, D. Sobola, A. D. Baruwa, and E. T. Akinlabi

Released

15. 3. 2021

Publisher

ASTM International

ISBN

2165-3992

Periodical

Materials Performance and Characterization

Year of study

10

Number

1

State

United States of America

Pages from

87

Pages to

98

Pages count

12

URL

https://doi.org/10.1520/MPC20200022

BibTex

@article{BUT170776,
  author="Dinara {Sobola}",
  title="Effect of Heat Treatment on the Structure and Morphology of Silver-Coated ThreeDimensional Printed Flexible Polylactic Acid Thin Plates",
  journal="Materials Performance and Characterization",
  year="2021",
  volume="10",
  number="1",
  pages="87--98",
  doi="10.1520/MPC20200022",
  issn="2165-3992",
  url="https://doi.org/10.1520/MPC20200022"
}