Additive Manufacturing of Electrically Conductive Polymers: A Comprehensive Review

Abstract

The ever-increasing progress in additive manufacturing technologies reflected in developing advanced materials by using 3D and 4D printers has enlarged an immense potential across designing, prototyping, and manufacturing electrically conductive polymers (ECPs) for numerous applications. This review comprehensively summarises the latest achievements in advanced ECPs materials employed in 3D and 4D printing technologies and their electrical conduction mechanisms. We overviewed main printing methods, i.e., fused filament fabrication (FFF) and stereolithography (SLA), adapted for ECPs, and explored the printability and performance of the resulting products. We also discussed the latest advances in ECPs obtained by using 4D printing techniques, which are time-responsive and adaptive structures achievable for diverse applications, including biomedicine, water treatment, electronics, energy storage devices, and sensing materials and devices. The combination of printability and electrical conductivity of ECPs enables other technological innovations like flexible electronics and translational medicine. However, future developments depend on optimising materials and manufacturing variables, which hinders the scalability of prototyped ECPs for industrialscale use. In addition to printability, durability and environmental stability of structures are other limitations to future research on additive manufacturing of ECPs, where integrating functionalities such as electronic components, sensing platforms, and biomedical devices into existing printing technologies presents a significant challenge for future research.

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