Researchers have developed a new 3D printing method that offers intricate constructions for next-generation energy, biomedical, and sensing technologies.
Developed by researchers at EPFL, the new method helps grow metals and ceramics inside a water-based gel, resulting in exceptionally dense constructions.
Researchers revealed that rather than using light to harden a resin pre-infused with metal precursors, as previous methods have done, they first created a 3D scaffold out of a simple water-based gel called a hydrogel.
“Our work not only enables the fabrication of high-quality metals and ceramics with an accessible, low-cost 3D printing process; it also highlights a new paradigm in additive manufacturing where material selection occurs after 3D printing, rather than before,” said Daryl Yee, head of the Laboratory for the Chemistry of Materials and Manufacturing.
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