| Abstract Scope |
PEEK compounds have been widely used in medical devices, including orthopedic implants, dental implants, spinal cages, and cranial implants. The critical concern is that PEEK lacks antimicrobial characteristics, making biodevices made of PEEK susceptible to microbial infection. In this study, different silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) weight percentages, ranging from 0.5 to 2.00 wt.%, are compounded with biomedical PEEK grade, along with a dispersion agent. The newly synthesized antimicrobial PEEK/AgNPs pellets are extruded into filament for use in fused deposition modeling (FDM) technology, enabling the fabrication of patient-specific implants. The compounding screw extrusion parameters, including the temperature profiles throughout the extrusion barrel, the screw speed, pulling speed, and cooling rate, are optimized for different AgNPs weight percentages to produce a uniform filament of 1.75 mm in diameter. Comprehensive rheological analyses were performed to determine the viscosity, shear rate, and viscosity–temperature relationships. Finally, the compounded filaments are 3D printed to ensure their printability. |