3D-printing polymer-based permanent magnets

Domingo-Roca, R., Jackson, J.C. and Windmill, J.F.C. (2018) 3D-printing polymer-based permanent magnets. Materials and Design, 153, pp. 120-128. (doi: 10.1016/j.matdes.2018.05.005)

Abstract

Production of permanent magnets is a complex process that implies very specific machinery able to perform very specific actions. Even though this problem has been approached by extrusion-based three-dimensional printing techniques, the resulting parts either have not been fully characterized or present low-resolution outputs. In this study we use the stereolithography three-dimensional printing technique to address this problem and demonstrate that it is possible to develop high-resolution polymer-based permanent magnets. We report an in-depth magnetic characterization of the produced materials, including magnetization of saturation, coercivity, magnetic relative permeability, magnetic behaviour, type of interaction between particles, and magnetic domain orientation. We have further demonstrated that this orientation can be re-arranged. Obtaining contrasting properties of the developed materials opens the possibility of developing personalized, high-resolution devices that can be used in a wide range of fields such as micro-robotics, biotechnology, biomedicine, and medical science among many others.

• Item Type: Articles
• Additional Information: This research was supported by the European Research Council (ERC Grant Agreement n. 615030) under the European Unions Seventh Framework Programme (FP/2007-2013).
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Domingo-Roca, Mr Roger
• Authors: Domingo-Roca, R., Jackson, J.C., and Windmill, J.F.C.
• College/School: College of Science and Engineering > School of Engineering > Systems Power and Energy
• Journal Name: Materials and Design
• Publisher: Elsevier
• ISSN: 0264-1275
• ISSN (Online): 1873-4197
• Published Online: 04 May 2018