3D Printing

Back in April 2021 we took a look at Chinese printer company Cerambot’s ceramic printer the Eazao, which enabled the printing of ceramics that could be fired inside a standard home microwave oven thanks to their nifty little microwave kiln gizmo. Now the company is back with a bigger offering, with a bunch of new improvements, and it’s available on Kickstarter. Let’s take a look in more detail at the new Cerambot Eazao Matrix. Bigger & Better First up, the new Cerambot Eazao Matrix is significantly bigger than the previous model. The Matrix comes in three different sizes which are the M500, M600, and M700. The largest is the M700 which provides the maximum printing volume at 500 x 500 x 700mm. That’s big enough to print your own bathroom sink or other bathroom ceramics! Imagine printing your own bidet! Mmmmm… custom freshness! The new Matrix is also capable of…    read more 

A new hybrid printing process developed by researchers at the University of Amsterdam (UvA) is promising to speed up printing of resins at sub-micron levels. The process has been developed by Dr Suhas Nawada, who previously worked as a post-doctoral researcher at the Van ‘t Hoff Institute for Molecular Sciences at UvA. The method combines elements of both SLA and DLP printing, with the rapid low resolution work being done by the DLP and the slower high resolution aspects being performed by the SLA segment, thus allowing both high speed and high resolution. The technology has been licenced to Gouda-based company atum3D via the Amsterdam Innovation Exchange (IXA), which is UvA’s technology transfer office. Best of Both Worlds The process utilizes composite imaging where large-scale, low-resolution patterns are printed using a DLP projector. Within these low-res layers, pre-defined photomasks enable the realization of micro-features. Switching photomask patterns between layers can…    read more 

The nuclear industry is raising the quality-bar in terms of additive manufacturing again, this time by installing a 3D printed steel component in a Swedish nuclear power plant. The component in question is an upper tie plate grid, which has been installed on top of an ATRIUM 11 fuel assembly at the Forsmark Nuclear Power Plant, which is operated by Vattenfall, in Sweden. It has been designed by Framatome, who are designers of nuclear equipment. Let’s have a look at the printed component, and then take a look at this fuel assembly in some more detail. Here’s the printed upper tie plate grid. Printed steel nuclear fuel assembly component (Image credit: Framatome) It sits on top of the ATRIUM 11 fuel assembly, which is the most advanced boiling water reactor (BWR) fuel design on the market today. It has been operating in plants worldwide since 2012 as lead fuel assemblies…    read more 

A new method for 3D printing MEMS sensors has been developed by researchers at the KTH Royal Institute of Technology. The research has been published in the Nature Microsystems & Nanoengineering journal. The method aims to reduce costs of MEMS (microelectromechanical systems) for lower production volumes, and the research paper highlights how the researchers have been focusing on one type of sensor in particular; accelerometers. Costly While MEMS are relatively cost-effective when produced at industrial scales for common items such as smartphones, the development and manufacturing costs associated with producing MEMS tend to be a lot higher when manufacturing for smaller production runs. Many high tech products such as robots and even certain aircraft are not built in sufficient numbers to benefit from the cost savings associated with full-scale mass production. Scanning Electron Microscope image of the printed sensor (Image credit: KTH Royal Institute of Technology) Design engineers can often…    read more 

We have seen a few examples of additive manufacturing being used to manufacture prosthetic devices for smaller animals such as cats and dogs, but we seldom see it used on larger animals. But this week we have seen AM used to save a horse from a grim end. Read on to know more. Clydesdale Freda is a 15 year old Clydesdale horse living at the Larkrigg Riding School, Kendal, England. Freda had developed a canker in her hoof, and after the canker had been removed it had been patched up with gauze and duct tape in order to keep it from getting infected. This is apparently a completely normal procedure. Printed hoof cover (Image Credit: Andrew Allshorn) The trouble was, the duct tape kept falling off, and there was a high risk of infection and the canker remnants spreading further. Freda has been in a fair bit of pain as…    read more