Graphene inks for printing based on thermoresponsive ABC triblock terpolymer gels

Abstract

Additive manufacturing has revolutionized the fabrication of complex 3D materials. Hydrogels are commonly used as “inks” in 3D printing and offer easy mixing and processing of many materials. Here, the synthesis and characterization of a new library of thermoresponsive ABC triblock copolymers based on oligo(ethylene glycol) methyl ether methacrylate (OEGMA, Molar Mass, MM = 300 g mol−1, A block), 2-phenylethyl methacrylate (PhEMA, B block) and di(ethylene glycol) methyl ether methacrylate (DEGMA, C block) is reported. Polymers of different comonomer compositions were fabricated and investigated in terms of their aqueous solution properties and their ability to form thermogels. The most promising polymer was then used to fabricate a graphene-containing ink, and graphene constructs were successfully printed and characterized in terms of the electrical conductivity properties.

Graphical abstract: Graphene inks for printing based on thermoresponsive ABC triblock terpolymer gels

Supplementary files

Transparent peer review

To support increased transparency, we offer authors the option to publish the peer review history alongside their article.

View this article’s peer review history

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
14 Mar 2025
Accepted
01 Jun 2025
First published
02 Jun 2025
This article is Open Access
Creative Commons BY license

RSC Appl. Polym., 2025, Advance Article

Graphene inks for printing based on thermoresponsive ABC triblock terpolymer gels

X. Liu, B. Feng, S. Tagliaferri, A. P. Constantinou, A. E. Porter, C. Mattevi and T. K. Georgiou, RSC Appl. Polym., 2025, Advance Article , DOI: 10.1039/D5LP00071H

This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported Licence. You can use material from this article in other publications without requesting further permissions from the RSC, provided that the correct acknowledgement is given.

Read more about how to correctly acknowledge RSC content.

Social activity

Spotlight

Advertisements