Managing thermal states in multi-material additive manufacturing of polymer-ceramic structures

Multi-material additive manufacturing (MMAM) enables the fabrication of components with a wide range of properties and functionalities. However, integrating materials such as ceramics, known for their high strength, chemical and wear resistance, with polymers, exhibiting toughness and ductility, remains challenging due to their vastly different processing temperatures. In this work, we modeled the dissimilar thermal processing of polymers and ceramics in a single AM platform. Ceramic processing was simulated using powder bed fusion (PBF), while polymer processing can be achieved using material extrusion, vat photopolymerization, material jetting, and PBF for powder-based polymers. Physical gaps between polymer and ceramic were designed to reduce heat transfer to the polymer during ceramic sintering. A range of common thermoplastic and thermosets polymers were studied. Results showed that increased laser power and scan speed raised actual processing temperatures. Thermoplastic polymers exhibited a narrow processing window, melting with increased laser power and scan speed, particularly at smaller gap sizes. In contrast, thermosets, due to their crosslinked nature, were less sensitive to laser power and scan speed, offering a wider processing window with less degradation. Multiple scans increased heat absorption in polymers, such that all polymers degraded below a gap size of 0.5 mm. This study provides insights into preserving polymers during integrated processing with ceramic components, expanding the design possibilities for dissimilar materials in MMAM.