Space Durable 3D Printed High-Performance Polymers Based on Cyanate Ester/Extended-Bismaleimide

To accomplish the potential of the New-Space emerging era and facilitate scientific and commercial space exploration, the development of versatile, customized, and affordable space technologies is essential. 3D printing is established as a disruptive technology, enabling the production of complex and lightweight structures with enhanced performance. However, the harsh conditions of the space environment, including atomic oxygen (AO), extreme temperatures, and ionizing radiation, pose significant challenges to the durability and longevity of additive manufacturing-produced polymers. Until now, there are no additive-manufacturing polymeric materials that are specifically developed and qualified to withstand space hazards. To address these challenges, novel materials for additive manufacturing, composed of cyanate ester and extended-bismaleimide are engineered to withstand the extreme conditions in space. The developed materials demonstrate superior thermo-mechanical properties (flexural stress of 72 MPa and T_g = 260 °C), enhanced durability to AO erosion, ionizing radiation (10 years in orbit), and thermal stability (T_d5% = 360 °C). Moreover, it is found that printing orientation governs the AO erosion, thus guiding optimal printing designs for enhanced durability to AO. The materials show improved performance, endurance, and reliability, thus contributing to the development of space-qualified components and enabling the advancement of additive manufacturing for future space missions.