School Seminar: Prof Cyrille Boyer, University of New South Wales
Title: Nanostructure Control in 3D Printing through Polymerization Self-Assembly Process
Speaker: Prof Cyrille Boyer, University of New South Wales
Monday, 15 May 4:00pm – 5:00pm
This seminar will be delivered in Chemistry Lecture Theatre 2 and Online (Zoom) Please email chemistry.researchsupport@sydney.edu.au for zoom link and password.
Host: Dr. David Nguyen
Abstract: Currently, there are no straightforward methods to 3D print materials with nanoscale control over morphological and functional properties. In this talk, a novel approach for the fabrication of materials with controlled nanoscale morphologies using a rapid and commercially available Digital Light Processing 3D printing technique will be presented. The approach uses a controlled/living radical polymerization technique, more specifically, reversible addition-fragmentation chain-transfer (RAFT) polymerization, to control the topologies of the polymers.1-2 In this talk, we report a rapid visible light mediated polymerization process and applied it to a 3D printing system.3 Following the optimization of the resin formulation, a variety of 3D printing conditions will be presented to prepare functional materials.4 The mechanical properties of these 3D printed materials were investigated under different conditions, showing that the control of the polymer structure can affect the performance of these materials.5 Furthermore, the polymer networks were able to be reactivated after the initial 3D printing process, which allowed the post functionalization of the printed materials via secondary photopolymerization processes, enabling to introduce information.6 Finally, by controlling the polymer architecture, we were able to precisely control the nanostructure of these 3D printing materials via a polymerization self-assembly process.7 The effect of nanostructure of 3D printed materials on their properties will be discussed as well as their potential applications in drug delivery and energy storage, such as their use as solid polymer electrolytes for supercapacitor application.
References:
1. Bagheri, A.; Fellows, C. M.; Boyer, C., Reversible Deactivation Radical Polymerization: From Polymer Network Synthesis to 3D Printing. Advanced Science 2021, 8 (5), 2003701.
2. Wu, C.; Chen, H.; Corrigan, N.; Jung, K.; Kan, X.; Li, Z.; Liu, W.; Xu, J.; Boyer, C., Computer-Guided Discovery of a pH-Responsive Organic Photocatalyst and Application for pH and Light Dual-Gated Polymerization. Journal of the American Chemical Society 2019, 141 (20), 8207-8220.
3. Zhang, Z.; Corrigan, N.; Bagheri, A.; Jin, J.; Boyer, C., A Versatile 3D and 4D Printing System through Photocontrolled RAFT Polymerization. Angewandte Chemie International Edition 2019, 58 (50), 17954-17963.
4. Zhang, Z.; Corrigan, N.; Boyer, C., A Photoinduced Dual-Wavelength Approach for 3D Printing and Self-Healing of Thermosetting Materials. Angewandte Chemie International Edition n/a (n/a).
5. Shi, X.; Zhang, J.; Corrigan, N.; Boyer, C., Controlling mechanical properties of 3D printed polymer composites through photoinduced reversible addition–fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerization. Polymer Chemistry 2022, 13 (1), 44-57.
6. Lee, K.; Corrigan, N.; Boyer, C., Rapid High-Resolution 3D Printing and Surface Functionalization via Type I Photoinitiated RAFT Polymerization. Angewandte Chemie International Edition 2021, 60 (16), 8839-8850.
7. Bobrin, V. A.; Lee, K.; Zhang, J.; Corrigan, N.; Boyer, C., Nanostructure Control in 3D Printed Materials. Adv. Mater. 2022, 34 (4), 2107643.
Bio: Prof Cyrille Boyer is an Australian Laureate Fellow, a full Professor in the School of Chemical Engineering, deputy-Head of School, and co-Director of Australian Centre for Nanomedicine at the University of New South Wales. Before joining UNSW, he has worked with Solvay-Solexis and Dupont Performance Elastomers. He is an associate Editor of European Polymer Journal and a member of Advisory Board of Advanced Materials, ACS MacroLetters, Polymer Chemistry, Journal of Polymer Science, etc.
His research has been recognized by several fellowships, including Australian Research Council (ARC) Australian Postdoctoral Fellowship (ARC-APD, in 2009) and ARC Future Fellowship (in 2013), and more recently, ARC Australian Laureate Fellowship (starting in 2023). He has received several prestigious research awards, including 2018 IUPAC-Polymer International Young Researcher award, 2016 ACS Biomacromolecules/Macromolecules Young Researcher Award, 2016 Journal of Polymer Science Innovation award, Le Fevre Memorial Prize awarded by Australian Academy of Science for chemistry, and 2015 Malcolm McIntosh Prize for Physical Science (one of the Prime Minister Prizes for Science). Since 2018, he has been listed as a Highly Cited Researcher in Chemistry and Cross-field by Clarivate and named as one of the Leaders in Polymers and Plastics by the Australian Newspaper. He has co-authored over 375 research articles, resulting in over 30,000 citations and H-index of 97 (Google Scholar).
Cyrille’s research interests mainly cover the preparation of functional macromolecules using photocatalysts, which find applications in various areas, including nanomedicine, advanced materials, and energy storage. In nanomedicine, his group designs new antimicrobial polymers. More recently, he has implemented his photochemistry to 3D printing for the fabrication of 3D printed objects with a control over the nano- and macro-structure.