Effects of Pre-Print Sterilization on the Material Properties of 3D Printed Products

With 3D printing comes the capacity to create custom plastic components needed in orthopaedic implants between surgeries, as short-term and possibly long-term measures. This customization and flexibility comes at the cost of facing new challenges: how can we sterilize and clean a 3D printed product that cannot withstand high temperatures, and what effects do low temperature surface sterilization have on the plastics being printed? This research will focus on determining the outcomes of current sterilization methods on raw materials and assess the current capacity to achieve the goals of custom plastic orthopaedic implants. The planned experiment will identify changes in material strength, physical dimensions and chemical signatures of three plastics identified by the industrial partner as key to their future products

Faculty Supervisor:

Jason Morrison

Student:

Emil-Peter Sosnowski

Partner:

Orthopaedic Innovation Centre

Discipline:

Engineering

Sector:

Medical devices

University:

University of Manitoba