聚醚醚酮是一種高性能半晶熱塑性聚合物，可做為人體骨植入物的新興材料。其擁有生物相容性、射線可透性等醫療優勢。具備與人體骨細胞相仿的彈性模數，能有效減少植體與人體骨組織機械性質的不匹配所引起的應力遮蔽效應。此外，聚醚醚酮具有生物惰性，通常需仰賴各式表面改質方法，例如生物陶瓷材料的表面塗層，以提升植體-骨接觸面的生物活性。傳統的生產限制下，人體植入物通常只有幾種尺寸可供選擇，常無法跟患者原骨頭完美貼合。藉由積層製造技術的引入，使得植入物的生產有客製化及製作複雜外型輪廓、多孔性結構的優勢，具有相當大的發展潛力。 綜合上述，本研究基於熔融沉積成型技術(Fused Deposition Modeling, FDM)，發展一套適用於聚醚醚酮材料的DELTA型三維列印系統。為提升聚醚醚酮模型表面的生物活性，開發一套以羥基磷灰石為材料的高壓粉粒噴塗系統。由於聚醚醚酮具有高於一般FDM塑性材料約200 °C的熱加工性質，提出適應的列印系統對策，並使用熱相儀探討其加熱行為。本研究運用田口方法進行列印參數分析，研究不同的加工參數與彈性模數及強度的關聯性，提出最佳機械性質之參數組合。最佳化的結果顯示，與先前試驗相比平均彈性模數訊噪比提升了1.03 dB，平均強度訊噪比則提高0.95 dB。另外，基於最佳化參數做出外型複雜的椎籠模型，驗證其在2300N的垂直負荷下仍屬彈性限度範圍內。最後，在聚醚醚酮列印品的表面噴塗羥基磷灰石塗層，探討系統在各式噴嘴設計、氣體種類及壓力變化下之噴粉量趨勢，以及不同模型孔隙大小下的粉粒附著程度，並提出日後改進之目標。 ;PEEK (Polyetheretherketone) is a high-performance, semi-crystalline thermal polymer which has been considered as desirable biomaterials for orthopedic implants because of characteristics such as biocompatibility and radiolucency. PEEK has an elastic modulus comparable to human cortical bone which can effectively reduce the stress shielding effect caused by the mismatch between the mechanical properties of the implant and human bone tissue. However, PEEK is biologically inert and typically rely on a variety of surface modification methods, such as surface coatings of bio-ceramic materials, to enhance the surface bioactivity and osseointegration. Under traditional production limitations, orthopedic implants are usually available in only a few sizes and often do not fit perfectly with the patient′s original bone. With the introduction of Additive Manufacturing (AM) technology, there is considerable development potential for the production of implants with the advantages of customization and fabrication of complex contours and porous structures. In this study, we develop a 3D printing system especially for PEEK material based on Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) technology. In order to improve the bioactivity of the PEEK surface, a high-pressure powder spraying system using Hydroxyapatite as material was also developed. Printing system configuration is proposed, aiming at the thermal processing conditions of about 200 °C higher than the common FDM filament. The Taguchi method is used to investigate the printing process parameters in order to achieve optimal elastic modulus and strength of PEEK printing part. The optimized results show that the average elastic modulus signal-to-noise ratio is increased by 1.03 dB compared to the previous test, and the average tensile strength signal-to-noise ratio is increased by 0.95 dB. Based on the optimized parameters, a complex cage model was made and verified to be within the elastic limit under the vertical load of 2300N. Hydroxyapatite coating was fabricated under different pore sizes of PEEK model. From the result, the powder spraying tendency of the system under various nozzle designs, gas types and pressure changes was investigated for future improvement.
