Investigation of the effect of dip coating with silica reinforced epoxy composite on the mechanical properties of 3D printed PLA materials

Coating parts with a composite improves mechanical strength, especially for low-strength materials. Ceramic reinforced polymer composites are one such coating, used in many industries to produce durable materials. In the study, composite materials were produced by coating the outer part of PLA parts produced with 10%, 15% and 20% fill densities with a 3D printer using additive manufacturing and material coating methods, with ceramic reinforced epoxy materials containing 15% silicon dioxide by weight. The impacts of the manufacturing parameters on tensile strength and hardness were investigated and SEM analyses were performed. The study concluded that the coated sample with an filler density of 20% demonstrated a maximum tensile strength of 22.34 MPa and a maximum hardness value of 74.7 Shore D. The SEM results showed the coatings were evenly deposited on the part's surface. The findings indicate that the coating of 3D-manufactured materials possesses considerable potential to produce high-performance materials.