Fabrication and Characterization of Graphite/Nylon 12 Composite via Binder Jetting Additive Manufacturing Process

Nowadays, graphite is used in many applications due to its unique combination of physical properties. Fabrication of graphite parts has been mostly restricted to traditional manufacturing processes (e.g. moldering), and limited works have been devoted to the feasibility of additive manufacturing (AM) technology to produce graphite components. In the present study, the feasibility of binder jetting additive manufacturing (BJ-AM) process in fabrication of graphite/nylon composites is investigated. The printability of the composite parts with varying graphite amount was experimentally examined through the adjustment of in-process parameters (e.g. saturation level and drying energy) and post-processing curing (e.g. curing time and temperature). The efficiency of nylon as the liquid phase sintering agent was studied via the mechanical property evaluation of the composites. In addition, the electrical properties of the graphite/nylon composites were investigated in order to evaluate the effectiveness of the manufacturing method for graphite-based structures for potential functional applications.