Temperature self compensation for dynamic sensitivity in 3D-printed piezoresistive sensors

Krivic, Gašper (author), Tocci, Mariachiara (author), Staffa, Agnese (author), Palmieri, Massimiliano (author), Cianetti, Filippo (author), Slavič, Janko (author)

Temperature variations induce nonlinear changes in the dynamic sensitivity of 3D-printed piezoresistive sensors, thereby limiting their deployment in thermally variable environments. Conventional temperature- compensation approaches rely on dedicated temperature sensors or extensive calibration matrices, which increase system complexity and reduce measurement reliability. This research investigates the hypothesis that temperature-induced changes in dynamic sensitivity in 3D- printed thermoplastic extrusion technology piezoresistive sensors are directly proportional to the changes in electrical resistance. The hypothesis was tested against twenty-four single-process 3D-printed accelerometers operating from 5 °C to 35 °C in three humidity conditions. Strong linear correlations (R$^2$ > 0.98) between the relative resistance and the dynamic sensitivity changes were found. The resistance-based temperature self-compensation method does not require additional sensors. It enables accurate sensitivity prediction with errors below 5 % in normal humidity and 12 % in extreme humidity environments. This approach eliminates the need for temperature sensors while maintaining measurement accuracy, enabling the deployment of thermoplastic 3D-printed piezoresistive sensors in smart structures operating across varying environmental conditions.

• Language: English
• Keywords: 3D printing, piezoresistive sensors, smart structures, temperature self compensation, resistance, dynamic sensitivity
• Work type: Article
• Typology: 1.01 - Original Scientific Article
• Organization: FS - Faculty of Mechanical Engineering
• Publication status: Published
• Publication version: Version of Record
• Year: 2026
• Number of pages: 11 str.
• Numbering: Vol. 309, art. 111075
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-176584
• UDC: 004.92:531
• ISSN on article: 1879-2162
• DOI: 10.1016/j.ijmecsci.2025.111075
• COBISS.SI-ID: 259970051
• Publication date in RUL: 04.12.2025

Record is a part of a journal

• Title: International journal of mechanical sciences
• Publisher: Elsevier
• ISSN: 1879-2162
• COBISS.SI-ID: 23008517

Licences

• License: CC BY 4.0, Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
• Link: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
• Description: This is the standard Creative Commons license that gives others maximum freedom to do what they want with the work as long as they credit the author.

Secondary language

• Language: Slovenian
• Keywords: 3D tiskanje, piezouporni senzorji, pametne strukture, temperaturna samokompenzacija, električna upornost, dinamična občutljivost