Nanoscale Features of Zeolite Fillers Enhance the Depth of Cure, Optical Properties, and Mechanical Properties of 3D-Printed Polymer Composite Structures

3D printing provides the possibility for the preparationof structuredzeolite nanomaterial monoliths, which can overcome the drawback oflimited forms obtained from conventional shaping methods and makemore efficient use of this material. Compared to other techniques,photopolymerization presents many advantages such as being environmentallyfriendly, having low energy consumption, and having excellent spatialand temporal controls. Nevertheless, a photocurable system with fillersstill faces challenge for the light penetration issue. In this paper,the effect of different characteristics of LTA zeolite (crystal sizeand molar Si/Al ratio) are discussed. The results demonstrate thatcompared to microfillers, nanosized particles lead to better depthof cure (DOC), optical properties, and mechanical properties for thecomposites. Furthermore, the Si/Al ratio of LTA zeolites under study(1 <= Si/Al <= 2.8) also has an impact on the DOC, opticalproperty of the composites, and the photopolymerization conversion.3D printed zeolite-embedded monoliths were tested for water vaporsorption in nanopores (60 degrees C, relative humidity = 50%). Thiswork enables a better understanding toward the fabrication of zeolitenanomaterials/polymer based composites by photopolymerization. Itwill expand the potential applications for 3D printing and zeoliteshaping for applications in several domains such as decontaminationand catalysis and in the biomedical field.