Additive Manufacturing Polyurethane Acrylate via Stereolithography for 3D Structure Polymer Electrolyte Application

Additive manufacturing (AM), also known as 3D-printing technology, is currently integrated in many fields as it possesses an attractive fabrication process. In this work, we deployed the 3D-print stereolithography (SLA) method to print polyurethane acrylate (PUA)-based gel polymer electrolyte (GPE). The printed PUA GPE was then characterized through several techniques, such as Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and scanning electron microscope (SEM). The printed GPE exhibited high ionic conductivity of 1.24 × 10-3 S cm-1 at low-lithium-salt content (10 wt.%) in ambient temperature and favorable thermal stability to about 300 °C. The FTIR results show that addition of LiClO4 to the polymer matrix caused a shift in carbonyl, ester and amide functional groups. In addition, FTIR deconvolution peaks of LiClO4 show 10 wt.% has the highest amount of free ions, in line with the highest conductivity achieved. Finally, the PUA GPE was printed into 3D complex structure to show SLA flexibility in designing an electrolyte, which could be a potential application in advanced battery fabrication.

Double-Crosslinked Polyurethane Acrylate for Highly Conductive and Stable Polymer Electrolyte

High ionic conductivity and good stability are major factors that influence the use of polymer electrolytes in electrochemical storage and conversion devices. In this study, we present polyurethane acrylate (PUA) membranes having enhanced ionic conductivity and swelling stability by double crosslinking the polyurethane (PU) and polyacrylate (PA) compartments. The crosslinking agent concentration was varied to control their mechanical properties, swelling stability, and ionic conductivity. Under optimum conditions, the electrolyte uptake of the double-crosslinked PUA membranes without notable defects was 245%. The maximum ionic conductivity of these membranes reached 9.6 mS/cm, which was higher than those with respect to most of the previously reported PUA- or PU-based polymer electrolytes.

The synthesis and properties of binary acrylate oligomer mixtures and their blends with different soybean oil contents

Two kinds of curable acrylate oligomer mixtures were used for films obtained by thermal polymerization of multiacrylates group. Then, a series of soybean oil (SO) blends were prepared by inclusion of high content (up to 50 wt %) of the SO into the polymer network. A polyurethane oligomer with multifunctional acrylate endcaps (from pentaerythritol triacrylate) was used as a base component for the curable blends. Two of the blend components are biosourced oligomers, namely acrylated epoxidized SO (AESO) and SO. The effects of the acrylate oligomers ratio and of the SO content on the cross-linked polyurethane acrylate (PUA) matrix were studied by evaluating various properties of the films such as thermal behavior, tensile properties, and surface properties. The glass transition temperatures ( Tg) increased by increasing the content (from 10% to 50%) of AESO from −41°C to −16°C. The hydrophobic properties of the films surface significantly increased with the AESO content and slightly decreased with the SO content. These blends provide new environment-friendly formulations for cross-linked PUA matrices.