3D printing - Materials

Producing glass objects using 3D printing is not easy. Only a few groups of researchers around the world have attempted to produce glass using additive methods. Some have made objects by printing molten glass, but the disadvantage is that this requires extremely high temperatures and heat-​resistant equipment.

A new technique called multimaterial multinozzle 3D printing uses high-speed pressure valves to achieve rapid, continuous, and seamless switching between up to eight different printing materials, enabling the creation of complex shapes in a fraction of the time currently required using printheads that range from a single nozzle to large multinozzle arrays.

An approach to the 3D printing of chocolate using cold extrusion instead of the conventional hot-melt extrusion method, eliminates the need for stringent temperature controls, offering wider potential for the 3D printing of temperature-sensitive food.

Due to rising demand for 3D-printable superalloy materials from companies in the aerospace, automotive and industrial segments, Digital Metal now launches two superalloy grades for use in extreme environments.

Addressing some of the biggest environmental challenges such as plastic waste, overconsumption of energy and other resources, rapidly deteriorating biodiversity and urbanization, the installation is a groundbreaking prototype in urban architecture and an industry-first showcase in Additive Manufacturing of a scalable, city-developing circular economy.

Researchers are drawing inspiration from mollusks to build lightweight, strong materials for wearable technology and more.

For the first time, a team of researchers have formulated inks using the 2D material MXene, to produce 3D printed interdigitated electrodes.

Global awareness of climate change and pollution is increasing, but finding ways to halt our dependence on fossil fuels and plastics is proving extremely difficult. One possible solution is to shift away from petrochemicals towards a biobased feedstock to make plastics, but how realistic is this proposal? IDTechEx uncovers the factors influencing adoption of biobased polymers in their report, "Biobased Polymers 2018-2023: A Technology and Market Perspective".\r\n

With Ultrafuse 316L, BASF 3D Printing Solutions launches an innovative metal-polymer composite for Fused Filament Fabrication into the market. It enables the safe, simple, and cost-efficient production of fully metal parts for prototypes, metal tooling, and functional metal parts in the simplest 3D printing process.