This award supports fundamental research on high-resolution additive manufacturing based on electrohydrodynamic 3D printing of melted thermoplastic materials. This research will develop a melt electrohydrodynamic printing process for thermoplastic materials to achieve high precision additive manufacturing of complex objects with single micron-scale resolution, which will overcome the resolution barrier of most existing additive manufacturing approaches and significantly improve the accuracy and surface finish of the produced parts. Theoretical and empirical process models will be investigated for the analysis of the melt electrohydrodynamic printing process with respect to material properties and process parameters. This research will integrate process development, process modeling, and a novel manufacturing system into a new framework that enables high-resolution 3D printing of complex industrial and biomedical products.
The research has potential to advance the emerging additive manufacturing industry by providing a low-cost high-resolution 3D printing process for the manufacturing of high precision parts with superior surface finish. Additive manufacturing have became a fast growing industry that enables rapid prototyping or production of components for automotive, aerospace, and medical applications. Considering the demanding requirements on the resolution and accuracy of the industrial products and advanced biomedical scaffolds, this research will provide a transformative approach that solves the long-existing resolution limitation of current additive manufacturing approaches. Moreover, the multidisciplinary education program in this project will link the research outcomes and students' activities to the needs of the industry for additive manufacturing, super-resolution printing, and instrumentation. The project will also contribute to undergraduate education, provide research experience for undergraduate and minority students, and disseminate discoveries to K-12 students through its outreach program.
