Improving Mechanical and Thermal Properties of 3D Printing Polyurethane Acrylate Composites by Zirconia Synergized With Stearic Acid

ABSTRACT In this work, zirconia (ZrO 2 ) was chemically modified with stearic acid (SA) and γ‐methacryloyloxypropyltrimethoxysilane (γ‐MPS) to prepare SA‐ZrO 2 and γ‐MPS‐ZrO 2 , respectively, which were further introduced into polyurethane acrylate (PUA). Then high‐strength polyurethane composites were fabricated by DLP photocurable 3D printing technology. FTIR and EDS provide the basis for the modification of ZrO 2 by γ‐MPS and SA. Compared with γ‐MPS‐ZrO 2 , SA‐ZrO 2 showed better dispersion, which was beneficial to improve the interfacial compatibility between ZrO 2 and PUA, as well as the mechanical properties of the composite materials. It was confirmed by SEM, contact angle, and stress–strain curve. In addition, SA‐ZrO 2 /PUA composites with excellent thermal stability and mechanical properties can be obtained by controlling the content of SA‐ZrO 2 to 15% of the mass of PUA. The initial decomposition temperature ( T 5% ) of SA‐ZrO 2 /PUA composites reaches 331.69°C, and the tensile and bending strengths are increased by 202.92% and 71.40%, respectively, compared with pure PUA. This work will provide theoretical and technical support for the development of photocurable 3D printing PUA composites with high performance and thermal stability.