(Invited) Poly(lactic acid)-Nanodiamond Composites for Electroanalytical Applications

Abstract

There has been an exponential increase in the popularity of 3D printing technology in the last few years, also in everyday life. Numerous applications are reported for poly(lactic acid) (PLA) based polymer composites with various conductive carbon fillers for electrochemical needs, such as sensors, batteries, water remediation, etc. The bulk of these reports is based on commercially available 3D printing filaments, with carbon black, graphene or carbon nanotubes as fillers. Regardless of good conductivity, these materials possess characteristics that are suboptimal for electrochemical applications, including charge transfer kinetics, stability to oxidation, electrolytic window, etc. 3D printouts offer versatility in terms of ease of cheap and on-demand fabrication of free-standing multielectrode setups e.g. by dual-extruder printing. However, to fully embrace their advantages enhancement of charge transfer kinetics by removing an excess of PLA and uncovering the nanofillers, is needed. Recently we have demonstrated laser ablation for locally sculptured effective modification of the electrochemical response of these materials. There is a great focus on the development of new conductive filaments that exhibit better mechanical, electric, thermal, and electrochemical properties. We have evaluated for the first time various forms of conductive nanodiamonds (ND), i.e. detonation nanodiamonds and diamond-phase rich boron-doped carbon nanowalls, as fillers for PLA-based composites for 3D printing. The goal of the research was to investigate and thoroughly understand the interactions between composite components and those that affect the mechanical parameters and electrochemical characteristics of printed elements, studying how ND addition to PLA matrix affects material strength, rheology, and melting temperature. In particular, the enhancement of electrode kinetics and electrochemically available surface area by ND was revealed and discussed. The authors acknowledge the financial support by The National Science Centre (Republic of Poland) SONATA BIS 2020/38/E/ST8/00409.