Inkjet Jetting Physics for Photopolymer Materials: Rheology, Waveform, Satellite Formation and Cure Timing
Segurola, Juan
2026-08-21 · Report · Version 1.1
Drop-on-demand material jetting converts a liquid photopolymer into a train of discrete droplets before solidification. The governing material state differs sharply from a low-shear benchtop viscosity measurement: the fluid experiences rapid deformation in the nozzle, a newly created interface with microsecond-to-millisecond age, ligament extension, pinch-off, flight, impact and then curing. Recent work with UV-curable acrylate inks shows that high-frequency rheology and dynamic surface tension can be combined with jetting temperature and waveform variables to predict satellite-free operating conditions. Independent studies of viscoelastic inks demonstrate multiple droplet-formation regimes under different excitation waveforms, while photopolymer material-jetting studies show that UV dose history also changes final conversion and properties. This Engineering Review organises those phenomena into a qualification framework spanning material rheology, nozzle/waveform dynamics, droplet breakup, impact/wetting and cure timing. 3Dresyns Inkjet products are included only as commercial implementation examples; no waveform, satellite-free window or jet velocity is inferred from product positioning.