A Stereolithography Method for the Rapid Manufacture of Glass-Fiber-Reinforced Composites

Abstract

Past attempts to improve the mechanical properties of stereolithographically manufactured parts by fiber reinforcement included: (i) use of long fibers laid out continuously in the polymer matrix; (ii) use of discontinuous fibers and glass microspheres and, (iii) building of fiber-reinforced shells around a solidified resin part. However, these efforts have not led to the development of an effective manufacturing method for the rapid fabrication of reinforced plastic parts. The goal of our research is the development of a manufacturing process for the rapid layered fabrication of polymer-based composite objects using short discontinuous fibers as reinforcements. This paper outlines the proposed process as well as some of the preliminary investigative work on depositing the fiber-resin liquid mixture from above, and analysis of the basic mechanical properties of the test samples.