Structural Evolution of PCL during Melt Extrusion 3D Printing (original) (raw)

Macromolecular Materials and Engineering

Screw-assisted material extrusion technique has been developed for tissue engineering applications to produce scaffolds with well-defined multi-scale microstructural features and tailorable mechanical properties. In this study, in situ timeresolved synchrotron diffraction was employed to probe extrusion-based 3D printing of polycaprolactone (PCL) filaments. Time-resolved X-ray diffraction measurements revealed the progress of overall crystalline structural evolution of PCL during 3D printing. Particularly, in situ experimental observations provide strong evidence for the development of strong directionality of PCL crystals during the extrusion driven process. Results also show the evidence for the realization of anisotropic structural features through the melt extrusion-based 3D printing which is a key development towards mimicking the anisotropic properties and hierarchical structures of biological materials in nature, such as human tissues.

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