The effect of the inorganic nanomaterials on the UV-absorption, rheological and mechanical properties of the rapid prototyping epoxy-based composites

We here report the photosensitive nanocomposites as the new rapid prototyping materials. The nanocomposites are prepared using the properly surface-modified sepiolite nanofibers, graphene oxide, TiO 2 and SiO 2 nanoparticles as the reinforcing fillers in the epoxy-based resin. These nanocomposites are investigated about the mechanical properties, viscosity and light absorption. By fitting the rheological test results into the Krieger-Dougherty equation, the influences of the different-shaped fillers on the material viscosity and the maximum packing fraction of the fillers are obtained. The extinction coefficients of the inorganic fillers are obtained using UV–Vis spectroscopy. The mechanical properties of the nanocomposites are improved due to the surface-modified inorganic fillers. It is found that the as-prepared materials are appropriate for stereolithography and digital light processing, with which we succeed in fabricating the dental model of high dimensional accuracy.