Performance Evaluation of Sandwich Structures Printed by Vat Photopolymerization

Additive manufacturing such as vat photopolymerization allows to fabricate intricate geometric structures than conventional manufacturing techniques. However, the manufacturing of lightweight sandwich structures with integrated core and facesheet is rarely fabricated using this process. In this study, photoactivatable liquid resin was used to fabricate sandwich structures with various intricate core topologies including the honeycomb, re-entrant honeycomb, diamond, and square by a vat photopolymerization technique. Uniaxial compression tests were performed to investigate the compressive modulus and strength of these lightweight structures. Sandwich cores with the diamond structure exhibited superior compressive and weight-saving properties whereas the re-entrant structures showed high energy absorption capacity. The fractured regions of the cellular cores were visualized by scanning electron microscopy. Elastoplastic finite element analyses showed the stress distribution of the sandwich structures under compressive loading, which are found to be in good agreement with the experimental results. Dynamic mechanical analysis was performed to compare the behavior of these structures under varying temperatures. All the sandwich structures exhibited more stable thermomechanical properties than the solid materials at elevated temperatures. The findings of this study offer insights into the superior structural and thermal properties of sandwich structures printed by a vat photopolymerization technique, which can benefit a wide range of engineering applications.