Additive manufacturing (AM) alias 3D printing translates computer-aided design (CAD) virtual 3D models into physical objects. By digital slicing of CAD, 3D scan, or tomography data, AM builds objects layer by layer without the need for molds or machining. AM enables decentralized fabrication of customized objects on demand by exploiting digital information storage and retrieval via the Internet. The ongoing transition from rapid prototyping to rapid manufacturing prompts new challenges for mechanical engineers and materials scientists alike. Because polymers are by far the most utilized class of materials for AM, this Review focuses on polymer processing and the development of polymers and advanced polymer systems specifically for AM. AM techniques covered include vat photopolymerization (stereolithography), powder bed fusion (SLS), material and binder jetting (inkjet and aerosol 3D printing), sheet lamination (LOM), extrusion (FDM, 3D dispensing, 3D fiber deposition, and 3D plotting), and 3D bioprinting....

Polymers for 3D Printing and Customized Additive Manufacturing

The field of 3D printing is continuing its rapid development in both academic and industrial research environments. The development of 3D printing technologies has opened new implementations in rapid prototyping, tooling, dentistry, microfluidics, biomedical devices, tissue engineering, drug delivery, etc. Among different 3D printing techniques, photopolymerization-based process (such as stereolithography and digital light processing) offers flexibility over the final properties of the 3D printed materials (such as optical, chemical, and mechanical properties) using versatile polymer chemistry. The strategy behind the 3D photopolymerization is based on using monomers/oligomers in liquid state (in the presence of photoinitiators) that can be photopolymerized (via radical or cationic mechanism) upon exposure to light source of different wavelengths (depending on the photoinitiator system). An overview of recent evolutions in the field of photopolymerization-based 3D printing and highlights of novel 3D print...

Photopolymerization in 3D Printing

Advances in 4D Printing: Materials and Applications

During the resorbable-polymer-boom of the 1970s and 1980s, polycaprolactone (PCL) was used in the biomaterials field and a number of drug-delivery devices. Its popularity was soon superseded by faster resorbable polymers which had fewer perceived disadvantages associated with long term degradation (up to 3-4 years) and intracellular resorption pathways; consequently, PCL was almost forgotten for most of two decades. Recently, a resurgence of interest has propelled PCL back into the biomaterials-arena. The superior rheological and viscoelastic properties over many of its aliphatic polyester counterparts renders PCL easy to manufacture and manipulate into a large range of implants and devices. Coupled with relatively inexpensive production routes and FDA approval, this provides a promising platform for the production of longer-term degradable implants which may be manipulated physically, chemically and biologically to possess tailorable degradation kinetics to suit a specific anatomical site. This review will discuss the application of PCL as a biomaterial over the last two decades focusing on the advantages which have propagated its return into the spotlight with a particular focus on medical devices, drug delivery and tissue engineering.

The return of a forgotten polymer : Polycaprolactone in the 21st century

The three-dimensional (3D) printing of flexible and stretchable materials with smart functions such as shape memory (SM) and self-healing (SH) is highly desirable for the development of future 4D printing technology for myriad applications, such as soft actuators, deployable smart medical devices, and flexible electronics. Here, we report a novel ink that can be used for the 3D printing of highly stretchable, SM, and SH elastomer via UV-light-assisted direct-ink-write printing. An ink containing urethane diacrylate and a linear semicrystalline polymer is developed for the 3D printing of a semi-interpenetrating polymer network elastomer that can be stretched by up to 600%. The 3D-printed complex structures show interesting functional properties, such as high strain SM and SM -assisted SH capability. We demonstrate that such a 3D-printed SM elastomer has the potential application for biomedical devices, such as vascular repair devices. This research paves a new way for the further development of novel 4D pr...

3D Printing of Highly Stretchable, Shape-Memory, and Self-Healing Elastomer toward Novel 4D Printing.

A review of 4D printing

Plant leaf-mimetic smart wind turbine blades by 4D printing

Nature-inspired smart solar concentrators by 4D printing

Laws of 4D Printing

The main difference between 3D and 4D printed structures is one extra dimension that is smart evolution over time. However, currently, there is no general formula to model and predict this extra dimension. Here, by starting from fundamental concepts, we derive and validate a universal bi-exponential formula that is required to model and predict the fourth D of 4D printed multi-material structures. 4D printing is a new manufacturing paradigm to elaborate stimuli-responsive materials in multi-material structures for advanced manufacturing (and construction) of advanced products (and structures). It conserves the general attributes of 3D printing (such as the elimination of molds, dies, and machining) and further enables the fourth dimension of products and structures to provide intelligent behavior over time. This intelligent behavior is encoded (usually by an inverse mathematical problem) into stimuli-responsive multi-materials during printing and is enabled by stimuli after printing. Here, we delve into the fourth dimension and reveal three general laws that govern the time-dependent shape-shifting behaviors of almost all (photochemical-, photothermal-, solvent-, pH-, moisture-, electrochemical-, electrothermal-, ultrasound-, enzyme-, etc.-responsive) multi-material 4D structures. We demonstrate that two different types of time-constants govern the shape-shifting behavior of almost all the multi-material 4D printed structures over time. Our results starting from the most fundamental concepts and ending with governing equations can serve as general design principles for future research in the 4D printing field, where the time-dependent behaviors should be understood, modeled, and predicted, correctly. Future software and hardware developments in 4D printing can also benefit from these results.

Farhang Momeni

Papers

A review of 4D printing

Plant leaf-mimetic smart wind turbine blades by 4D printing

Nature-inspired smart solar concentrators by 4D printing

Laws of 4D Printing

Laws of 4D printing