Multifunctional Ti₃AlC₂-Based Composites via Fused Filament Fabrication and 3D Printing Technology

MAX phase, as a group of layered ternary carbides and nitrides exhibiting combined properties of metallic and ceramic materials, attracts increasing interest because they own exceptionally chemical, physical, electrical, thermal, and mechanical properties. In the present paper, a novel Ti3AlC2-based green part was manufactured by extrusion-based fused filament fabrication (FFF) and 3D printing technologies. The morphology, thermal/electrical conductivity, thermal stability, electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding effectiveness (SE), and mechanical properties of Ti3AlC2/binder with the volume ratio of 1:1 were investigated. The tensile and compressive strengths and elongation are measured to be 8.29 MPa and 18.20%, 44.90 MPa and 33.76%, respectively. The morphology of the filament reveals that Ti3AlC2 powders are well bonded by the thermoplastic binder. More importantly, the composite shows good thermal and electrical conductivities together with the excellent EMI shielding effectiveness, which is of great potential in the practical applications as conductor, heat dissipating, anti-static, and EMI shielding materials. The successful fabrication of Ti3AlC2-based composites via FFF-based 3D printing technology is beneficial to develop other MAX phase products with complex geometries and additional functionalities.