Printable polyimide resin for SLA/DLP high-temperature parts
This technology enables high-performance aromatic polyimide plastics — the kind used in aerospace and electronics for their exceptional heat and chemical resistance — to be 3D printed using a light-based process called vat photopolymerization (think resin SLA printing). The inventors created a specially designed liquid resin that hardens when exposed to light at microscale resolution, and then converts into a true polyimide through a subsequent heating step. The result is 3D-printed parts with the structural precision of photopolymer printing but the material performance of engineering-grade thermoplastics that previously could not be processed this way. This bridges a longstanding gap between the design freedom of additive manufacturing and the demanding performance requirements of aerospace, electronics, and industrial applications.
What you could build
A commercial resin cartridge and print process kit for SLA/DLP 3D printers targeting manufacturers of aerospace components, semiconductor packaging, and high-temperature industrial parts — sold to OEM printer makers, specialty materials distributors, or directly to defense and aerospace fabricators who need complex geometries in heat-resistant materials.
Who in Virginia should care
Defense primes and aerospace suppliers in Northern Virginia and the Hampton Roads corridor (e.g., Northrop Grumman, General Dynamics, BAE Systems) and semiconductor/electronics manufacturers in the DC-metro region would have direct interest in high-temperature 3D-printable materials for complex components.
Readiness: Lab validated
Concept — described but not yet demonstrated. Lab validated — supported by experimental results in the patent. Prototype likely — the text describes a built, working embodiment.
Readiness is inferred from the patent text, not from a lab visit.
The record
- Inventors
- MARUTI HEGDE, TIMOTHY E. LONG, VISWANATH MEENAKSHISUNDARAM, CHRISTOPHER B. WILLIAMS, NICHOLAS CHARTRAIN
- Granted
- April 4, 2023
- Status
- Granted patent
- Patent number
- 11618832
Ready to talk?
Virginia Tech Intellectual Properties handles licensing for this technology.
Prosim summaries are generated from public patent text and are not legal advice.