Hierarchical Porous Structure Fabrication via Hybrid Stereolithography and Inkjet Printing with Sacrificial Liquid

Abstract Inspired by porous morphology in nature, such as bone and lung tissue, synthetic porous materials are widely adopted in engineering applications that require lightweight, thermal resistance, energy absorption, and structural flexibility. One of the main challenges in the current porous material manufacturing techniques is their limited control over individual pore size, connectivity, and distribution. This paper presents a novel additive manufacturing process to fabricate porosity-embedded structures by integrating stereolithography and inkjet printing using a sacrificial liquid - water. A solenoid-based inkjet nozzle dispenses water droplets onto a layer of liquid photopolymer resin. Then the resin layer is photocured by a mask image projection device using a digital light processing device. The photocuring process defines the layer profile and captures the deposited water droplets in the solidified layer. The refilled fresh resin will further embed water droplets and form a new layer for the subsequent water droplet deposition. Three-dimensional (3D) structures with embedded water droplets can be printed layer-by-layer. The captured water will evaporate when heated, leaving an air-filled porous 3D structure. By selectively depositing water droplets and varying inkjet printing parameters, including pressure, nozzle opening time, and jetting frequency, the micropores whose sizes from 100 μm to 500 μm and distributions within the 3D-printed part can be modulated. This hybrid process can fabricate 3D structures with homogenously distributed pores and graded polymer structures with varying porosities. The elastic modulus of 3D-printed foam structures in different pore distributions has been compared using mechanical testing.