Latest 3D Printing News, innovation, and materials

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Image https//unsplash.com/photos/KshEaH06rV8 La
test 3D Printing News, innovation, and
materials The COVID-19 crisis has strapped a
rocket to digitization, pushing every industry to
rethink the way they service, manufacture, and
sell their wares. Further, the climate crisis
looms, pressing upon us a sense of urgency to
rethink the status quo of our industrial and
economic systems. This trend towards global
evolution has ensured that human beings can no
longer operate in the same way we have for
millennia. We must dramatically rethink the way
industries operate and how we develop solutions
to challenges, new and old. In a way that hasnt
been seen before, these global crises are pushing
industries to fast-track their digital and
technological innovation. This new world of
radical reinvention is the perfect environment
for technologies like 3D printing to really shine
to become instrumental in the areas of
manufacturing and design. Today were going to
look at a few of the latest news bites and trends
around 3D printing. CNT-infused polymeric inks
make a splash Research out of the Michigan
Technological University has demonstrated the
printing of carbon nanotube (CNT) infused epoxy
inks. CNTs are particularly lorded for their high
specific strength, but theyre difficult to
manufacture at scale. This new research, however,
may show one way of scaling the material
up. What does this mean for the future of 3D
printing? Essentially, the CNT-epoxy polymer inks
are conductive and strong. This means they may be
ideal for use in electronics and aerospace
manufacturing. Worlds largest 3D printer being
built by GE, Voxeljet and Fraunhofer Institute GE
Renewable Energy, Fraunhofer IGCV, and printer
company Voxeljet AG have joined forces to develop
the worlds biggest 3D printer. The printer is to
be used to produce molds that will create large
composite components for GEs Haliade-X offshore
wind turbines. Named the Advance Casting Cell
(ACC), the printer is a modular system able to
print molds for castings up to 60 metric tons and
9.5 meters in diameter. A pattern and mold of
this size would typically take over ten weeks to
develop. With this new printer, manufacturers say
it would be able to be produced in just two weeks.
The ACC is expected to launch later in 2021, with
printer trial runs starting early 2022.
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3D printed motors are in development Electric
motors are gaining popularity in the world of
automobiles, with businesses all over the world
trying for a share in the EV sphere. With such
interest comes innovation. While motors
themselves havent seen much of a change in
design since their initial invention, advances in
manufacturing processes have seen automotive
designers experimenting with innovative measures.
The goal? Weight reduction and performance
gains. There have already been a few examples of
additive manufacturing being applied to electric
motor production but researchers from the
Manufacturing Technology Centre (MTC) are pushing
further. Theyve been working on developing a
motor with the most 3D printed components ever
seen, including 3D printed cooling systems. 3D
printed bee homes to help save the bees As the
number of bees dwindles, researchers scrabble
with ways to boost public interest in the crisis.
The newest idea? 3D printed bee homes. A group
of researchers from Lancaster University is
implementing a plan to 3D print bee homes for
distribution to the public. This bee-awareness
outreach effort involves the design of the
worlds first webcam-equipped BeeBox. Its
hoped that these new bee homes wont just spur
people to care more about the environment, but
will also allow researchers to gain insights into
the lives of bees that have been closed off until
now. The BeeBoxes are to be printed with
recycled plastic and are made to be mounted on
the ground or in trees. 3D Systems launches
VisiJet Wax Jewel Red 3D printer manufacturer 3D
systems just announced a new addition to its
material portfolio VisiJet Wax Jewel Red. The
material is intended to enable more intricate
designs for use in the production of
jewelry. Additive manufacturing has made a
lasting impression on the jewelry industry,
letting designers push their creativity to new
levels. The introduction of VisiJet Wax Jewel Red
specifically enables unmatched quality of lost
wax casting, allowing artisans to design styles
with even finer features. Colorful seaweed-based
bioink in development Researchers from the
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) have
created a new
seaweed-based bioink designed for use in 3D
printing.
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Named ArtSea Ink, the material is largely made
out of alginate a biodegradable, naturally
occurring polymer traditionally found in seaweed.
Alginate is low-cost, biocompatible, and is able
to be used without heat to form a stable gel.
This means it can be extruded at low temperatures
to make up 3D designs. The PNNL team also added
fine mica pigment powders to the formulation. The
result? A collection of vibrant, colorful inks
that are perfectly suited to artistic
applications. A 3D printed microneedle vaccine
patch is developed Researchers at the University
of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Stanford
University have developed a 3D printed vaccine
patch thats supposedly more effective than a
traditional vaccine shot. The microneedle patch
apparently delivers an immune response 10 times
greater than a traditionally administered vaccine
shot. This is on top of other advantages such as
the potential to be self-administered and easy,
painless delivery. The development of the
technology is hoped to set a precedent for even
faster global development of vaccines. 3D
printed chicken cooked with robotic
lasers Researchers from the Columbia University
School of Engineering and Applied Science have
designed a way of cooking 3D printed chicken with
robotic lasers controlled via software. The
Digital Food team experimented with various
means of cooking by exposing raw 3D printed
chicken structures to both infrared and blue
light. The cooking depth, moisture retention,
color development, and flavor differences were
then compared to traditional, stove-cooked
meat. Why cook meat in this way? The scientists
wanted to see if they could produce a heating
method with the same degree of resolution as 3D
printing. 3D printed sensor detects exposure to
harmful herbicide Scientists at DL ADV-Tech and
Washington State University (WSU) have utilized
additive manufacturing technology to design a way
to detect exposure to the herbicide glyphosate,
which is potentially carcinogenic. The test kit
is made up of a number of nanotubes covered with
3D printed sensors and uses technology similar to
that used in glucose monitors. The difference? It
deploys currents to
assess glyphosate levels.
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The technology is doesnt require special storage
and is low-cost which makes it ideal for use in
measuring exposure to potentially harmful
materials. 700 grams of chicken fat cultured in
meat-printing breakthrough Food-tech firm
MeaTech has hit another milestone in its mission
to create a tasty, eco-friendly 3D bioprinted
alternative to organic meat products. The first
biomass 3D printed demonstration of its kind, the
company has cultivated just over 700 grams of
pure chicken fat within a single run. The deposit
apparently behaves just like real fat. Pending
approval, MeaTech has plans to produce it at a
pilot plant next year, marketing it as a
taste-enhancing ingredient. Grimes wears a 3D
printed gown for the Met Gala The Canadian
musician Grimes took to the 2021 Met Gala red
carpet in a gown by fashion designer Iris Van
Herpin. The gown is striking in and of itself,
but its creation is particularly interesting it
was made using 3D printing techniques. Composed
of a nude illusion bodice that boasts hand-cast
lightning bold shapes arranged in a 3D laser cut
pattern, the gown is the latest high-profile
piece from Van Herpen that uses digital
manufacturing techniques in its creation. The
gown took a reported 900 hours to perfect and
made an epic splash on the runway. 3D printed
smart glasses are brought to market Luxexcel, a
prescription lens 3D printing specialist, has
announced a partnership with Optiswiss, another
lens manufacturer. Together, they intend to bring
3D printed smart glasses to the mainstream
market. As part of the partnership, Optiswiss has
installed Luxexcels VisionPlatform 7 at its lab,
allowing the companies to manufacture 3D printed
lenses for manufacturers en-masse. The lenses are
intended for use in both regular glasses and
advanced smart devices. The partnership is set
to put both businesses at the forefront of
innovation in the smart eyewear industry. The
combination of Luxexcels technology and
Optiswiss experience is set to be a lucrative
and innovative partnership. The world is
changing COVID-19 has boosted the world into a
constant state of urgency. Both regular consumers
and healthcare professionals are being confronted
with quality issues and shortages of both
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everyday consumer goods and essential medical
products. This is due in large part to a global
market model that is hinged on centralized mass
manufacturing. Products and services we once
took for granted are no longer available or even
appropriate its essential that new solutions
be developed rapidly. This is where 3D printing
comes in. Now you have a good grasp of the
current trends and innovations within the context
of 3D printing.