Khodaei Mohammad, Razavi Hamed, Nosrati Hamed
Materials Engineering Group, Golpayegan College of Engineering, Isfahan University of Technology, Golpayegan, 87717-67498, Iran.
Mechanical Engineering Group, Golpayegan College of Engineering, Isfahan University of Technology, Golpayegan, 87717-67498, Iran.
Heliyon. 2024 Oct 11;10(20):e39240. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e39240. eCollection 2024 Oct 30.
The mechanical properties of 3D-printed scaffolds for load-bearing implantation are crucial. Although the addition of nanoparticles to polymeric scaffolds can improve their mechanical and biological properties, due to certain limitations in printability, high amounts of reinforcement cannot be used. Therefore, in this study, an attempt was made to use ultrasonic vibration to inhibit nozzle clogging during fused filament fabrication (FFF) of polylactic acid (PLA) scaffolds containing 0, 20, and 40 wt% akermanite (Ak). Nozzle clogging happened during the conventional 3D printing of PLA-40 wt%Ak, while that did not occur during ultrasonic-assisted 3D printing of PLA-40 wt%Ak. Results of X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) indicated that applying ultrasonic vibration had no negative effect on the phases and morphology of the scaffolds. The results obtained by the compression test indicated that applying ultrasonic during 3D printing resulted in almost 27 % increment of elastic modulus and almost 25 % increase of the compressive strength of the scaffolds. As the conclusion, this study highlights the effectiveness of ultrasonic-assisted 3D printing in producing nanocomposite scaffolds with significantly higher nanoparticle loadings, as compared to conventional printing methods. By utilizing ultrasonic vibration during the printing process, the study showcases the possibility of overcoming viscosity limitations and optimizing the mechanical performance of scaffolds for various biomedical applications, including bone tissue engineering.
用于承重植入的3D打印支架的力学性能至关重要。尽管向聚合物支架中添加纳米颗粒可以改善其力学和生物学性能，但由于可打印性存在一定限制，无法使用大量增强材料。因此，在本研究中，尝试利用超声振动抑制在熔融长丝制造（FFF）含0、20和40 wt%钙黄长石（Ak）的聚乳酸（PLA）支架过程中的喷嘴堵塞。在PLA-40 wt%Ak的传统3D打印过程中发生了喷嘴堵塞，而在PLA-40 wt%Ak的超声辅助3D打印过程中未发生堵塞。X射线衍射（XRD）分析和扫描电子显微镜（SEM）结果表明，施加超声振动对支架的相和形态没有负面影响。压缩试验获得的结果表明，在3D打印过程中施加超声导致支架的弹性模量增加近27%，抗压强度提高近25%。总之，本研究强调了与传统打印方法相比，超声辅助3D打印在生产具有显著更高纳米颗粒负载量的纳米复合支架方面的有效性。通过在打印过程中利用超声振动，该研究展示了克服粘度限制并优化用于包括骨组织工程在内的各种生物医学应用的支架力学性能的可能性。
