3D Printing

Scientists at UC Santa Cruz and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) have reported the first example of ultrafast 3D-printed graphene supercapacitor electrodes that outperform comparable electrodes made via traditional methods. Their results open the door to novel, unconstrained designs of highly efficient energy storage systems for smartphones, wearables, implantable devices, electric cars and wireless sensors.

We are indebted to the BBC, the highly respected publication Nature Biotechnology and of course the Wake Forest Baptist Medical Centre in North Carolina for bringing this exciting use of electronics technology to our attention. Under the leadership of Prof Anthony Atala at Wake Forest, custom-made, living body parts have been 3D-printed in what is described as a significant advance for regenerative medicine.

João Victor Araújo Tavares has developed a 3D printer after completing a scholarship with the University of Derby. While completing his postgraduate studies in Mechatronic Engineering at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN), João spent a year studying at the University of Derby as part of the Science Without Borders overseas study programme.

A student team from TU Delft in the Netherlands have pushed the boundaries of 3D printing by designing and producing a fully functional 3D printed stainless steel bicycle. The students designed the frame to demonstrate the potential of this new method for 3D printing.

Kurtz Ersa North America has announced it will exhibit at the EPTECH Calgary & Edmonton Shows. The Calgary show is scheduled to take place Tuesday March 1 while the Edmonton Show is scheduled to take place Thursday March 3.

A 3D printer produced in Germany from the in-house designed renkforce brand has been unveiled by Conrad Business Supplies. Featuring dual extruders, two colour printing and the capability to create water-soluble 3D objects, the RF2000 joins the single extruder RF1000 launched at the end of 2013. Conrad has also introduced the 3D Printbox control unit, which can be used in the place of a PC to provide more convenient management of the printer.

Orbital ATK announced that it has successfully tested a 3D-printed hypersonic engine combustor at NASA Langley Research Center. The combustor, produced through an additive manufacturing process known as powder bed fusion (PBF), was subjected to a variety of high-temperature hypersonic flight conditions over the course of 20 days, including one of the longest duration propulsion wind tunnel tests ever recorded for a unit of this kind. Analysis con...

A team of Northwestern Engineers have created a new way to print 3D metallic objects using rust and metal powders. While current methods rely on vast metal powder beds and expensive lasers or electron beams, Northwestern’s new technique uses liquid inks and common furnaces, resulting in a cheaper, faster, and more uniform process.

Polaroid has confirmed a three-year partnership with UK manufacturer Environmental Business Products (EBP). EBP is Europe’s largest and longest established collector and remanufacturer of inkjet cartridges with over 20-years experience and credibility in the print industry. In 2014, the company diversified into the 3D printing market introducing the technology to their European customers.

Quant 3D, a division of OK International, has launched its Q300 3D Printer which is said to be 30 percent faster than its Q200 and which has a large build volume of 10 x 8 x 8in (255 x 205 x 205 mm).