Development of a biofidelic cranial bone surrogate using additive manufacturing

Cranial bone surrogates are widely used in many applications, including mechanical, impact and blast, and biomedical testing. Such surrogate models often attempt to mimic the properties of bone to achieve best results. This research focuses on using additive manufacturing to develop a 3D printed cranial bone surrogate that closely replicates the mechanical, structural, and dielectric properties of the native skull. Multiple 3D printing technologies were explored, including material jetting, fused deposition modeling (FDM), and stereolithography (SLA). Several materials were selected for investigation, with varying sample types for each material. Mechanical evaluation included both tensile and flexural testing. Porosity was introduced into specific materials using select methods to recreate the internal trabecular structure of cranial bone. Dielectric testing was also performed to compare complex permittivity results to native cranial bone. Results indicated that two materials, PPS-GF and Rigid 10K, were best suited to replicate the properties of native cranial bone. The porous samples of both the PPS-GF and Rigid 10k materials also showed significant promise for mechanical and structural behavior. Further development of this surrogate model is recommended, with suggestions for future studies provided.

Name thesis:degree_name

M.S. (Master of Science)

Level thesis:degree_level

Masters

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Engineering (UMKC)

Grantor

University of Missouri--Kansas City

Year dc:date.issued

2026

Author dc:creator

• Krebs, Charles Jackson

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Thiagarajan, Ganesh, 1963-

Language dc:language.iso

en_US

Handle dc:identifier.uri

https://hdl.handle.net/10355/112345

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:mospace.umsystem.edu:10355/112345