Customized FDM 4D Printing for Metastructures with Variable…

International researchers are moving to the next level in digital fabrication, publishing their findings in ‘Shape-Adaptive Metastructures with Variable Bandgap Regions by 4D Printing.’ Focusing on how 4D metastructures can filter acoustics and transform filtering ranges, the authors used FDM printing with a 4D printer head to experiment with deforming materials that are lower in … Read more

Climate Disrupted: Chitin and Keratin Bioplastics

If we plan on continuing to make plastics past the point that oil is no longer profitable, easily accessible or socially acceptable, we will need to turn to more ecologically sustainable materials. Like everything in our industrial world, we may ultimately learn that these things are actually harmful to our ecosystem in one way or … Read more

Nanyang Technological University: Bessel Beams in Laser-Based 3D Printing for Tissue Engineering

Andy Wen Loong Liew has submitted a thesis, ‘Laser-based 3D printing using bessel beams for tissue engineering applications’ to Nanyang Technological University. Exploring a new technique for bioprinting, Liew studies the use of Bessel beams in connection with regenerative medicine techniques, and he also compares the benefits of traditional techniques. Liew cites the benefits of … Read more

Using Robotic GMAW Additive Manufacturing to Make Metal Components…

Gas metal arc welding (GMAW) additive manufacturing is a more affordable metal technology, with a high deposition rate for potentially fabricating medium and large components. Van Thao Le, with Le Quy Don Technical University in Vietnam, has published a paper, titled “A preliminary study on gas metal arc welding-based additive manufacturing of metal parts,” that … Read more

China: Testing Titanium Alloy Scaffold Mimicking Trabecular Structures

Chinese researchers are looking further into the uses of titanium in bioprinting, outlining their findings in the recently published ‘Mechanical behavior of a titanium alloy scaffold mimicking trabecular structure.’ Five different unit cells were used in this study as the authors experimented with creating new trabecular structures via electron beam melting. 3D printing has already … Read more

Researchers Imitate Natural Vascular Structures to 3D Print New…

UK researchers from the Department of Engineering, University of Cambridge are studying new systems for construction materials, outlining their results in the recently published ‘A novel biomimetic design of a 3D vascular structure for self-healing in cementitious materials using Murray’s law.’ Some of the most interesting scientific breakthroughs are founded in nature as researchers are … Read more

3D Printing News Briefs: March 20, 2020

Leading off our 3D Printing News Briefs today, the Wohlers Report for 2020 has been released. Moving on, Nanofabrica has achieved excellent results of direct rapid soft tooling with 3D printing. Two more interesting 3D printed projects we’re covering are ACCIONA’s 3D printed concrete bus stop, and HP’s 3D printed artwork in honor of Women’s … Read more

HP’s New BioPrinter Helps Researchers Make Pharmaceutical Samples

It has been years in the making, but finally, we know more about HP’s highly awaited bioprinting system. In the last years, HP has moved heavily into the research of microfluidics and bioprinting technology, leading to the development of their first bioprinter called D300e BioPrinter, which was recently used by a team of scientists at … Read more

Fortify Expands Composites 3D Printing with Continuous Kinetic…

Fortify is one of a number of startups that are developing unique technologies for 3D printing composites. While we await the commercial release of the company’s digital light processing (DLP) system for 3D printing composite materials, Fortify has released more information about when that release is to come, along with news of a new product, … Read more

Porsche Creating Partially 3D Printed Seats that Offer Different…

3D printing is used often in the automotive sector, and many recognizable names, from Volkswagen and BMW to Ford and Toyota, are adopting the technology. German automobile manufacturer Porsche, which specializes in high-performance sports cars, SUVs, and sedans, has turned to 3D printing multiple times in the past to make components for e-drive powertrains and turbo … Read more

Pellet 3D Printing to Be Advanced by DSM and Juggerbot 3D

Dutch chemical company Royal DSM has announced a partnership with Youngstown, Ohio’s Juggerbot 3D to develop 3D printers and materials for pellet-based manufacturing. This represents greater momentum toward the adoption of pellet-based additive manufacturing (AM), which is sometimes considered to be the future of material extrusion 3D printing technologies.  While DSM is already well-known within … Read more

Polbionica Could Become the Next Success Story in Organ Bioprinting

Last year, a scientific team in Warsaw, Poland, bioprinted the world’s first prototype of a bionic pancreas with a vascular system. Led by clinical transplantation expert and inventor, Michał Wszoła, the specialists seek to introduce 3D bioprinting of the bionic pancreas to clinical practices worldwide in just over three years. The work, conducted at Polbionica, … Read more

Climate Disrupted: The Promise of PHA?

In our last article in our series covering 3D printing in a climate-disrupted world, we discussed the myriad problems associated with polylactic acid (PLA), the most popular plastic and bioplastic for desktop 3D printers. Here we’ll break down one of the more interesting alternatives to PLA that is emerging on the market. Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) are … Read more

3D Printing and Mass Customization, Hand in Glove Part II

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In the first article in this series, I laid out a consumer consumption-driven world where our needs are never quite met by things. Our needs are now mistranslated into a desire for objects that we do not yet have. Yet when we get that t-shirt, pair of headphones or gadget it never fills the needful … Read more

China: Researchers Test 3D Printed Modular Microfluidic Systems

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Chinese researchers from the School of Mechanical and Electronic Engineering at Lingnan Normal University are examining ways to improve the use of microfluidics, outlining their research in the recently published ‘3D Printed Reconfigurable Modular Microfluidic System for Generating Gel Microspheres.’ In this study, the research team developed an interconnected network of microfluidics meant to prevent … Read more

Argonne National Laboratory Using 3D Printed PEEK Connectors to…

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Just a few years ago, the FDA approved the first Molybdenum-99 (Mo-99) to be produced domestically without the use of highly enriched uranium (HEU). This medical isotope helps radiologists detect bone decay, heart disease, and some types of cancers that are difficult to find, and in 2018, the US Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration … Read more

AM for General Industry and Tooling to Reach $5.48 Billion by 2029

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SmarTech has published its latest report, Market Opportunities for Additive Manufacturing in the General Industry and Tooling Sector 2020-2029, which will add a great deal of clarity to some of the stories we’ve recently covered related to the adoption of 3D printing in the general industry and tooling sector. One of the most important insights … Read more

Lynnette Kucsma: “Our Next Food Printer Will Use Lasers to Cook Food”

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Lynette Kucsma (Image: Natural Machines) 3D printing technology could challenge the way we eat in the future, making recipes trivial and letting the imagination run wild. It will basically disrupt the kitchen. When Paul Bocuse, one of the most celebrated French chefs of all time, reshaped the style of cooking at restaurants, many weren’t happy. … Read more

Researchers 3D Printing for Contaminant Removal with 3D Printed…

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International researchers explore methods for removing contaminants in their recently published ‘Nuclear wastewater decontamination by 3D-Printed hierarchical zeolite monoliths.’ Focusing on the radioactive cationic species, 137Cs+ and 90Sr2+, this study brings greater exposure to the need for selective removal of radionuclides. Harkening back to the disasters that occurred at Chernobyl in 1986 and the Fukushima Daiichi plant … Read more

FFF 3D Printing at University of Tennessee

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Dayton Phillip Street recently presented his doctoral dissertation, ‘Enhancing the Macroscopic Properties of Parts Printed via Fused Filament Fabrication by Incorporating Nanoscopic Additives,’ at the University of Tennessee. With a focus on creating additives for fused filament fabrication (FFF), Street strives to improve the ‘inferior performance’ of 3D printed polymeric materials. Polymers are widely used … Read more

BOTT 1000 Morlaco: A Superbike Built With 3D Printed Components

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Thed BOTT 1000 Morlaco is the one of the first superbikes’s to have its body and other components produced with 3D printing technology. This superbike was developed by Bottpower, a Spanish high-tech motorsport engineering company located in Valencia. The company is managed by David Sanchez, a mechanical engineer who has experience on, not only motorbike … Read more

ASTM and UL to Publish ISO-ASTM Standard for Additive Manufacturing

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Nonprofit standards development organization ASTM International, which develops and publishes technical standards for a range of industries, materials, products, services, and systems around the globe, has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Underwriters Laboratories (UL), another nonprofit which works to advance its mission of public safety through discovery and application of scientific knowledge. The … Read more

University of Washington Researchers Analyze Effects of Powder…

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Researchers from the University of Washington are exploring further complexities of material science in metal printing, outlining their findings in the recently published ‘Electron beam additive manufacturing of Ti6A14V: Evolution of powder morphology and part microstructure with powder reuse.’ Concerned with quality for aerospace applications, the authors designed this study to address ‘fundamental issues’ concerning … Read more

3D Printing Scaffolds for Regeneration of Tissue After…

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Researchers from Belgium and Germany explore topics in bioprinting, evaluating biocompatible structures in the recently published ‘Evaluation of 3D Printed Gelatin-Based Scaffolds with Varying Pore Size for MSC-Based Adipose Tissue Engineering.’ Focused on finding further progressive solutions for patients who have gone through mastectomies or other types of trauma involving soft tissue, the research team … Read more

Customized 3D Printed TPU Products for Mining?

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Researchers in Poland are studying materials for more unique applications, sharing their results in the recently published ‘Thermoplastic polyurethanes for mining application processing by 3D printing.’ Mining is undeniably hard work, and materials related to this industry must be extremely tough as they are continually vulnerable to harsh elements, as well as abrasive contact and … Read more