Development of CNF-reinforced resins for 3D printing

What is Cellulose Nanofiber (CNF) Reinforced Resin?

Asahi Kasei 's cellulose nanofiber (CNF) reinforced resin is a material made by combining highly heat-resistant CNF with various engineering plastics.

Asahi Kasei has developed a technology to nano-disperse CNF in resin, which is highly hydrophilic and prone to aggregation, and features an integrated manufacturing process from CNF production to CNF composites.

Asahi Kasei 's CNF is a highly heat-resistant biomass filler made from cotton linters, and when combined with resin, it has excellent properties such as high elastic modulus, low linear expansion coefficient, low friction coefficient, and low abrasion resistance.

Features of Asahi Kasei 's CNF-reinforced resin for 3D printers

Asahi Kasei is developing CNF-reinforced resin for 3D printers by taking advantage of the following features:

Feature 1: Thixotropy

Asahi Kasei 's technology for nano-dispersing CNF in resin allows the material to exhibit "thixotropy," a property in which the viscosity decreases and the fluidity increases when the shear rate is high, but the viscosity increases and the material becomes solid when the shear rate is low or after the shear force is removed.

In 3D printers that use the Material Extrusion method, filament must flow when it is discharged from the nozzle through the pipe, and must solidify quickly after deposition, making this highly thixotropic material suitable for this purpose.

Feature 2: No nozzle wear or clogging

CNF is a filler that is softer and finer than carbon fiber (CF) or glass-fiber (GF), and therefore does not cause nozzle wear or clogging. Therefore, there is no need to replace the nozzle with a reinforced one, which is normally required for fiber-reinforced resins.

Asahi Kasei 's lineup of CNF-reinforced resins (development products) for 3D printers

Asahi Kasei is developing "PA/CNF reinforced resin (filament/pellet)" and "SEBS/CNF reinforced resin (filament/pellet)" for 3D printers.

PA/CNF reinforced resin for 3D printers (developed product, filament/pellet)

PA/CNF reinforced resin is an engineering plastic that contains 5-10% CNF in polyamide and has excellent low warpage, dimensional accuracy, appearance, strength, heat resistance, and flexibility.

Asahi Kasei 's PA/CNF reinforced resin for 3D printers has excellent adhesion between layers due to its high fluidity when discharged from the nozzle, and the layers are less likely to peel off when force is applied to the model. It can also be used for modeling with pellet-type modeling machines, and the material is less susceptible to warping even in large items.

Asahi Kasei has developed two grades: "DX101," a filament containing 7% cellulose nanofiber in polyamide and offering excellent dimensional accuracy, low warping, strength and heat resistance; and "BX102," a filament containing 5% cellulose nanofiber in polyamide and offering excellent flexibility, appearance and heat resistance.

SEBS/CNF reinforced resin for 3D printers (developed product, filament/pellet)

SEBS is a soft material with excellent weather resistance. By adding CNF, it becomes possible to mold SEBS, which was previously difficult to mold.

Asahi Kasei 's SEBS/CNF reinforced resin for 3D printers has excellent low warpage, dimensional accuracy, flexibility, and hydrolysis resistance. Furthermore, it is a material that can express a wide range of softness depending on the shape design. In addition, large items can be printed using pellet-type molding machines.

If you are interested, please contact us.