Solvent-free vat photopolymerization of unsaturated polyesters: Structure-property relationships for depolymerization

Additive manufacturing with vat photopolymerization (VP) as an emerging manufacturing method addresses various goals for enhanced sustainability including waste reduction, dematerialization, and the customization of intricate and complex 3D parts. Unsaturated polyesters (UPEs) recently gained attention as a sustainable material source for lithographic additive manufacturing. While previous methods demonstrated the printability of UPE-based resins, these studies lack the solvent-free approach demonstrated herein. Furthermore, the effective depolymerization of polyester thermosets has remained relatively unexplored. This report demonstrates structure–property relationships and subsequent solvent-free VP of UPEs with PEGDA-575 as a reactive diluent with effective depolymerization of polyester thermosets through base-catalyzed methanolysis. Graphical abstract: [Figure not available: see fulltext.].