https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-02119698/document

Mechanical properties of components fabricated with open-source 3-D printers under realistic environmental conditions

A global sustainability perspective on 3D printing technologies

Three-dimensional (3D) printing has the potential to transform science and technology by creating bespoke, low-cost appliances that previously required dedicated facilities to make. An attractive, but unexplored, application is to use a 3D printer to initiate chemical reactions by printing the reagents directly into a 3D reactionware matrix, and so put reactionware design, construction and operation under digital control. Here, using a low-cost 3D printer and open-source design software we produced reactionware for organic and inorganic synthesis, which included printed-in catalysts and other architectures with printed-in components for electrochemical and spectroscopic analysis. This enabled reactions to be monitored in situ so that different reactionware architectures could be screened for their efficacy for a given process, with a digital feedback mechanism for device optimization. Furthermore, solely by modifying reactionware architecture, reaction outcomes can be altered. Taken together, this approach constitutes a relatively cheap, automated and reconfigurable chemical discovery platform that makes techniques from chemical engineering accessible to typical synthetic laboratories.

Integrated 3D-printed reactionware for chemical synthesis and analysis

A critical review of the use of 3-D printing in the construction industry

Purpose – This study aims to quantify the ultimate tensile strength and the nominal strain at break (ɛf) of printed parts made from polylactic acid (PLA) with a Replicating Rapid prototyper (Rep-Rap) 3D printer, by varying three important process parameters: layer thickness, infill orientation and the number of shell perimeters. Little information is currently available about mechanical properties of parts printed using open-source, low-cost 3D printers. Design/methodology/approach – A computer-aided design model of a tensile test specimen was created, conforming to the ASTM:D638. Experiments were designed, based on a central composite design. A set of 60 specimens, obtained from combinations of selected parameters, was printed on a Rep-Rap Prusa I3 in PLA. Testing was performed using a JJ Instruments – T5002-type tensile testing machine and the load was measured using a load cell of 1,100 N. Findings – This study investigated the main impact of each process parameter on mechanical properties and the effe...

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The impact of process parameters on mechanical properties of parts fabricated in PLA with an open-source 3-D printer

The technological evolution of the 3-D printer, widespread internet access and inexpensive computing has made a new means of open design capable of accelerating self-directed sustainable development. This study critically examines how open source 3-D printers, such as the RepRap and Fab@home, enable the use of designs in the public domain to fabricate open source appropriate technology (OSAT), which are easily and economically made from readily available resources by local communities to meet their needs. The current capabilities of open source 3-D printers is reviewed and a new classification scheme is proposed for OSATs that are technically feasible and economically viable for production. Then, a methodology for quantifying the properties of printed parts and a research trajectory is outlined to extend the existing technology to provide complete village-level fabrication of OSATs. Finally, conclusions are drawn on the potential for open source 3-D printers to assist in driving sustainable development.

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Kristen J. Laciak

Papers

3-D Printing of Open Source Appropriate Technologies for Self-Directed Sustainable Development