Principal investigator: Animesh Kundu
Co-PI: John Coulter
University: Lehigh University
Industry partners: Mussel Polymers, Inc.
Mussel Polymers, Inc, (MPI) is a small business that specializes in commercializing mussel-inspired biomimetic polymers for adhesives and coatings across defense, industrial, and biomedical applications. MPI and Lehigh will collaborate to develop catechol-functionalized ceramic materials with high loading capacity (>80%) for advanced additive manufacturing. The team will systematically evaluate several binder formulations developed by MPI to assess their efficacy for ceramic material extrusion additive manufacturing (C-MEAM). The outcome will be a processing-properties map connecting the rheological behavior of the ceramic materials (a critical consideration for additive manufacturing) with the chemical formulations of the binder, their concentrations, and the C-MEAM processing conditions as well as the post processing conditions. The successful development of the new formulations will provide a competitive edge to a PA-based company. The students trained in this research will gain experience in an innovative market-driven R&D effort and could potentially be retained in the commonwealth after graduation.