Posted: Aug 25, 2017 (Nanowerk News) Virginia Tech researchers have created a novel way to 3-D print the type of high-temperature polymeric materials commonly used to insulate space craft and satellites from extreme heat and cold. Previously, the polyimide could previously be made only in sheets. The material, formally known as Kapton, is an aromatic polymer composed of carbons and hydrogens inside benzene rings, which provides exceptio…

Posted: Aug 17, 2017 (Nanowerk News) A UBC Okanagan researcher has discovered a new artificial bone design that can be customized and made with a 3D printer for stronger, safer and more effective bone replacements. Hossein Montazerian, research assistant with UBC Okanagan's School of Engineering, has identified a way to model and create artificial bone grafts that can be custom printed. Montazerian says human bones are incredibly resilient, but when th…

Posted: Aug 16, 2017 (Nanowerk News) Additive manufacturing, also known as 3-D printing, is replacing conventional fabrication processes in critical areas ranging from aerospace components to medical implants. But because the process relies on software to control the 3-D printer, additive manufacturing could become a target for malicious attacks -- as well as for unscrupulous operators who may cut corners. Georgia Tech professor Raheem Beyah is shown…

Posted: Aug 15, 2017 (Nanowerk News) Levitation techniques are no longer confined to the laboratory thanks to University of Bristol engineers who have developed an easier way for suspending matter in mid-air by developing a 3D-printed acoustic levitator. This new technique, published in Review of Scientific Instruments ("TinyLev: A multi-emitter single-axis acoustic levitator"), could be applied to a range of applications, including blood tests. …

Posted: Aug 15, 2017 (Nanowerk News) Scientists at the University of Oxford have developed a new method to 3D-print laboratory- grown cells to form living structures. The approach could revolutionise regenerative medicine, enabling the production of complex tissues and cartilage that would potentially support, repair or augment diseased and damaged areas of the body. In research published in the journal Scientific Reports ("High-resolut…

Posted: Aug 14, 2017 (Nanowerk News) Researchers at Brigham Young University (BYU) are the first to 3D-print a viable microfluidic device small enough to be effective at a scale much less than 100 micrometers. Microfluidic devices are tiny chips that can sort out disease biomarkers, cells and other small structures in samples like blood by using microscopic channels incorporated into the devices. The accomplishment, which is a major breakthrough toward…

Posted: Aug 03, 2017 (Nanowerk News) Artificially constructed human tissues and organs have been developed with a number of different purposes in mind, from advanced robotics and novel materials to drug screening. The precision demanded by drug screening applications puts especially large demands on how accurately biomimetic constructs replicate tissue characteristics and behaviors involved in drug absorption. A new advance, published this week in the …

Posted: Jul 23, 2017 (Nanowerk News) In an emergency, early warning is key to escaping from a hazard, such as a forest fire or a chemical leak. Motivated to improve on safety, a team from King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) is using 3D printing to develop a cheap, reliable system to signal danger1. Existing early warning systems rely on satellite monitoring, watch towers or expensive fixed sensors. The system, devel…

Posted: Jul 20, 2017 (Nanowerk News) Cheap, plastic toys--no manufacturer necessary. The 2020 toy and game market is projected to be $135 billion, and 3-D printing brings those profits home. People have scoffed that 3-D printers are simply toys themselves. But they probably didn't realize how much money is made off playthings. Do-it-yourself (DIY) manufacturing--making goods at home with a 3-D printer using open source designs from a free online reposi…

Posted: Jul 19, 2017 (Nanowerk News) Researchers at UBC's Okanagan campus have designed a tiny device --built using a 3D printer--that can monitor drinking water quality in real time and help protect against waterborne illness (Sensors, "3D Printing-Based Integrated Water Quality Sensing System"). Prof. Mina Hoorfar, Director of the School of Engineering, says new research proves their miniaturized water quality sensors are cheap to make, can operate c…