Dielectric spectroscopy and thermal properties of poly(Lactic) acid reinforced with carbon‐based particles: Experimental study and design theory

In the present study, polylactic acid (PLA) enriched with carbonaceous particles like multi‐walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs), graphene nanoplates (GNPs) or a combination of both up 12 wt % of loading are used for producing 3D‐printed specimens with fused deposition modeling (FDM) technology which are then experimentally and theoretically investigated. The goal is to propose a non‐conventional filaments indicated for additive manufacturing process with improved dielectric and thermal properties, compared to the performances exhibited by the unfilled polymer. In the light of the above, a wide dielectric spectroscopy and a thermal analysis, supported by a morphological investigation, are performed. The results highlight that the introduction of 1‐ dimensional filler (MWCNTs) are more suitable for improving the dielectric properties of the resulting materials, due to the enhancement of the interfacial polarization and the presence of functionalized groups, whereas 2‐dimensional nanoparticles (GNPs) better favor the thermal conduction mechanisms thanks to the lower thermal boundary resistance between the two phases, polymer/filler. In particular, with a loading of 12 wt % of MWCNTs the relative permittivity reaches the value of 5.35 × 103 much greater than that of 3.7 measured for unfilled PLA while for the thermal conductivity the enhancement with 12 wt % of GNPs is about 261% respect the thermal behavior of the neat polymer. The experimental results are correlated to theoretical findings, whereas a design of experiment (DoE) approach is adopted for investigating how the different fillers influence the dielectric and thermal performances of the 3D‐printed parts, thus assisting the design of such innovative materials that appear promising for development and applications in the electromagnetic (EM) field and heat transfer.