Stereolithography printing of PCL-based bone graft substitutes
File(s)
Author(s)
Ovrebo, Oystein
Type
Thesis or dissertation
Abstract
Stereolithography printing stands out as a promising additive manufacturing technique for the production of bone graft substitutes and other tissue-engineered constructs due to a high spatial resolution, generation of internal microstructures, and high productivity. A current obstacle for the application of this manufacturing method is the limited library of biocompatible materials and non-standard characterization methods. In this work, a low molecular weight polycaprolactone (PCL) triacrylate resin was synthesized for stereolithography printing, characterized using ISO standard testing methods, and printed into complex lattice structures. The mechanical properties of the resin were characterized in tension (E = 12.2 MPa, σbreak = 1.49 MPa, εbreak = 13 %) and in compression (E = 97.99 MPa, σmax = 21.1 MPa, εmax = 30.1 %). Furthermore, the trade-off between scaffold stiffness and porosity was investigated for two cellular lattice structures (octet-truss and tetradecahedron) in silico using Finite Element Analysis (FEA). Initial FEA results indicate that the octet-truss lattice exhibits a higher stiffness at a lower relative density (ρ’ < 20 %) than the tetradecahedron lattice.
Version
Open Access
Date Issued
2020-12
Date Awarded
2021-03
Copyright Statement
Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial NoDerivatives Licence
Advisor
Stevens, Molly
Jonathan, Jeffers
Sponsor
UK Research and Innovation
Cambridge Commonwealth, European & International Trust
Publisher Department
Materials
Publisher Institution
Imperial College London
Qualification Level
Masters
Qualification Name
Master of Philosophy (MPhil)