Schlagwort: 3D printing in science

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A team of behavioral ecologists out of the University of Windsor, Canada, studies the mating habits of color-changing toads in Costa Rica using RoboToads — 3D printed, motorized replicas.

As most of us know, attracting a mate is no simple task. How do you bring attention to yourself without being too obvious? A species of toad in Central America has it figured out: Just change color!

Daniel Mennill and Stéphanie Doucet, behavioral ecologists out of the University of Windsor, first came upon the amphibians many years ago while studying birds in Costa Rica. Completely by accident, they noticed that some of the toads were changing color, from brown to yellow, and only for one day.

The husband-and-wife duo later determined that only the males change during the species’ one-day breeding “season”. In order to learn more about these peculiar mating habits, their research team recently developed RoboToads, which are 3D printed, motorized replicas.

The objective of the project is to answer the question, How do you pick a good lemon? To be (slightly) more academic, how do female toads select a partner from a seemingly uniform sea of yellow?

The process of creating the RoboToads is actually quite complex. Early efforts were little more than a creative outlet, as explained by Lincoln Savi, Mennill’s and Doucet’s graduate student:

“They’re like so cool, the yellow toads, that I kind of wanted to have one, but can’t. So I made my own, and once I had a super realistic model it was like, ‘Hey we could actually do science with that.’”

How to Fool a Toad

The first replicas, made of plasticine and clay, just didn’t cut it, so the team turned to 3D modeling and printing. Savi began with photogrammetry, a method of generating 3D models by stitching together multiple 2D photos. Easier said than done, unfortunately:

“I only got 11 photos before he moved,” says Savi. “I couldn’t get any photos of his underside and he was in some leaves, so there was some geometry hidden by leaves.”

Savi sculpts hidden aspects after the rest of the toad is 3D printed, with painting and robotics to follow. In fact, adding the mechanics is the easiest part. Savi elaborates:

“I used some programmable microprocessors and some servos and just made a simple program that chooses a random angle and makes the toad move there.”

Soon Savi’s knot of toads — yes, knot is the proper term — will be put into action. The window for testing is small, as the living counterparts only mate at the very start of Central America’s six-month rainy period. Thus the team is already in Costa Rica, waiting for the first drops to fall.

Sources: CBC News, Science

Website: LINK

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Scientists from Temple University in Philadelphia created a prototype for an “electrospun healing” device which uses soy protein and water to print personalized bandages directly onto a patient’s skin.

Soon, every household may have a handheld 3D printer which prints personalized bandages directly onto a wound. The printed bandage would allow a patient moves as it feels like part of their skin. Better yet, such a bandage would help tissues regenerate.

That is if Jonathan Gerstenhaber — a bioengineering professor at Temple University in Philadelphia — has anything to say about it. He’s already working on such a 3D printer together with the engineering faculty and students at the university.

The 3D printer uses electrospinning technology meaning it can print a bandage onto a patient’s skin. Electrospinning makes the synthetic material – polymer fiber – which is then laid onto the patient creating a perfectly fitting, personalized bandage.

Gerstenhaber’s plan was to develop personalized, flexible bandage for serious wounds which not only stopped the bleeding but also quickly regenerates skin. This process is called “electrospun healing”.

“I was like, ‘Wow, I’m making this tool to make my life easier, but it’s going to open this whole new avenue of research.” Gerstenhaber explains,”We’ve mainly been looking at burns, and the sorts of wounds that don’t heal well, and when they heal, they sort of heal like very bad skin.”

Using Electrospun Healing at Home?

The scientists are testing the bandages to ensure they both adhere to skin, but also that they can help tissues to regenerate. To do to this, they chose to use soy protein and use water to apply it. When a patient moves, the bandage moves with them.

“The main technique is making a fabric, sort of like a felt. Individual fibers are hundreds of nanometers wide—much thinner than a hair. Instead of using wool fibers, we take soy proteins and turn them into very thin fibers. At an image level, it this looks a lot like the natural matrix of how our cells live,” Gerstenhaber describes.

Gerstenhaber has so far developed a prototype for a larger 3D printer, but also for a handheld version. He presented a demonstration of the prototype at The Franklin Institute on March 25th.

However, the large version still needs work to improve its efficiency. Before being able to print a bandage, a 3D scan must first be taken of the affected area of skin. However, this process needs to be sped up.

But, the handheld printer is closer to being brought to market by the scientists. Someday, Gerstenhaber hopes this model will be in every home.

Source: The Temple News

Website: LINK

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3D printing may provide a sustainable solution to the current crisis of coral reef death globally.

Population growth and the environmental burden that accompanies it has taken a serious toll on the Australian Great Barrier Reef and many other coral reefs over the last few years. Rising temperatures across the reefs have led to coral bleaching and are devastating fish populations. Indeed, reefs are home to many diverse sea species and thus vital to ensure the survival of many creatures.

In an effort to find a solution and sustain fish and plant populations, XtreeE, the 3D printing service, has collaborated with Seaboost the marine life restoration company.

Together, they have developed a 3D printed artificial coral reef. This will be placed at the Calanques National Park in France for a test run. The 3D printed reef will accurately present the intricate and complex structures of a real coral reef. Therefore, it is based on scans of existing reefs around the region obtained by using a 3D scanner.

The team hopes that the design could boost populations of sea species.

The complexity of the reef design is most accurately achieved by using additive manufacturing technologies. XtreeE will likely use materials that mimic coral such as concrete and sand to print the structures. In order to ensure compatibility and uptake by fish, the materials will be sourced at location. Otherwise, the team may run in danger of species not recognizing the structure and thus avoiding it.

Setting the stage for global coral reef restoration

Traditionally, coral reefs take hundreds of years to form. However, given the speed of ongoing man-made habitat destruction, reefs wouldn’t have time to recover. That is why projects such as XtreeE’s are vital to trial.

If successful, many more reefs could be up for restoration using 3D printing technologies.

Artificial reefs have been around for a long time in the form of sunken ships, tires or car wrecks. However, many of these do not accurately resemble coral reefs, which provide tiny nooks and spaces for flora and fauna to habitat.

XtreeE isn’t the first to embark on 3D printed coral reefs. Last year, Dutch marine company Boskalis 3D printed six reefs for the Monaco Larvotta Research in collaboration with Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation. The reefs will be monitored for two years to measure how much marine life they can attract.

“There is no silver bullet with coral restoration,” explains Fabien Cousteau, the ocean conservationist and documentary filmmaker. “You are talking about a very complex environment, a complex animal with a lot of variations with each subspecies. All of this is an experiment. In the short term, we’ve seen a lot of positive momentum with certain species of coral. But remember, this is a drop in the bucket in a very, very large ocean.”

Given the rise of bio-printing technologies and ongoing material developments, reefs could one day also be printed using actual coral.

Layer by layer – 3D printing process of reef by XtreeE. (Image: XtreeE)

Source: Sculpteo, XtreeE & National Geographic

Website: LINK

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CaloriSMART is an advanced model system that uses magnetocaloric materials to achieve refrigeration cooling. The system, that even could help you get a better fridge, was designed by researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Ames Laboratory.

Gas compression refrigeration is a 100-year-old energy inefficient technology which needs updating. Researchers from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Ames Laboratory are working on new technologies to do just this.

Using 3D printing, they built an advanced model system that reaches refrigeration level cooling by using magnetocaloric materials. It was specifically designed to rapidly evaluate materials in regenerators and cut down manufacturing time and costs.

They call the contraption the CaloriSMART (short for Small Modular Advanced Research-scale) Test System. It could lead the way in developing energy-efficient cooling systems.

To test the system, they began by taking a sample of the chemical element gadolinium and subjecting it to sequential magnetic fields. The sample alternated between cooling down and heating up. Timed pumps circulated water during these cycles and the system delivered a cooling power of 10 watts. The gradient between hot and cold was 15 degree Celsius (just under 30° F). This process used just three cubic centimeters of gadolinium.

“Despite predictions, we would fail because of anticipated inefficiencies and losses, we always believed it would work… but we were pleasantly surprised by just how well it worked. It’s a remarkable system and it performs exceptionally well. Magnetic refrigeration near room temperature has been broadly researched for 20 years, but this is one of the best systems that has been developed,” said Vitalij Pecharsky who is CaloriCool project director and Ames Laboratory scientist as well as Anston Marston Distinguished Professor in the Iowa State University Department of Materials Science and Engineering.

Creating a 3D Printed Manifold for the CaloriSMART Test System

To create the system, project scientist Julie Slaughter and her team spent five months designing and building. They used 3D printing to create a manifold. This is the part of the system which holds the sample and circulates the fluid.

Therefore, this 3D printed part harnesses the cooling power of the system. By using 3D printing technology, the team was able to custom build the part to make sure it perfectly fit their needs.

As well as a 3D printed manifold, the system also has customized neodymium-iron-boron magnets. These magnets deliver a concentrated 1.4 Tesla magnetic field to both the pumping system and the sample.

“The main reason we conceived and built CaloriSMART is to accelerate design and development of caloric materials so they can be moved into the manufacturing space at least two to three times faster compared to the 20 or so years it typically takes today,” added Pecharsky.

The researchers have big plans for the future including upgrading the system to work with electrocaloric materials. Visit the Ames Laboratory and the Caloricool website to find out more – and let’s hope that your next fridge is more effective thanks to this technology.

Source: Press Release

Website: LINK

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Sounds like Sci-fi: Berkeley Scientists 3D printed entirely liquid materials that are flexible, stretchable, and could power electronics. They also could be used for chemical synthesis.

Researchers at the Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory have figured out a way to print 3D structures that are made entirely of liquids. They used a modified version of the Qidi X-one low-cost 3D printer to inject water into silicone oil within a tube.

The researchers say the technique has potential applications for liquid electronics. Therefore, they could potentially power flexible and stretchable devices in the future.

Additionally, developers could use the tubes to separate molecules or deliver nanoparticles more effectively.

The 3D printed threads of water range between 10 microns to 1 mm in diameter. Tom Russell, a visiting faculty scientist in Berkeley Lab’s Materials Sciences Division, explained that the new materials essentially reconfigure themselves. As a result, it makes them suitable for many tasks “from chemical synthesis to ion transport to catalysis”.

Schematic of oil in water using supersoap. (Image: Berkeley Labs)

Developing the Material

The material essentially consists of a liquid tube inside another liquid. They achieved this by locking water into place using gold nanoparticles. These act as a surfactant which stabilizes the flow of the water and keeps the tube from breaking. Thus, the team dubbed the surfactant ‘supersoap’.

The supersoap also contains polymer ligands in oil. The polymer and gold particles attract each other, while the water and oil repel each other. This creates a powerful interface between oil and water that locks the two liquids in place.

“This stability means we can stretch water into a tube, and it remains a tube. Or we can shape water into an ellipsoid, and it remains an ellipsoid,” explained Russell. “We’ve used these nanoparticle supersoaps to print tubes of water that last for several months.”

The modified 3D printer

The researchers modified a Qidi X-one 3D printer by removing the parts that are traditionally designed to print plastic. Furthermore, they replaced them with a syringe pump and needle that extrudes liquid. Subsequently, the team reprogrammed the printer to inject oil and water.

“We can squeeze liquid from a needle, and place threads of water anywhere we want in three dimensions,” said Joe Forth, a postdoctoral researcher in the Materials Sciences Division. “We can also ping the material with an external force, which momentarily breaks the supersoap’s stability and changes the shape of the water threads. The structures are endlessly reconfigurable.”

The findings have been published in Advanced Materials. If you want to drill deeper, here’s the supplementary information.

Source: Berkeley Lab

The modified Qidi-X printer. (Image: Berkeley Labs)

Website: LINK

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A conceptual 3D printed idea called the Synthetic Pollenizer by an artist from Brisbane aims to keep bee populations alive and thriving.

A whopping third of our food sources rely on bees. And yet, it’s no secret that bees are in danger of dying out. The varroa mite and still-in-use pesticides called neonicotinoids have reduced the population of bees and other pollinators significantly.

Luckily, there are many humans who are willing to help the cause. For example, Michael Candy, an artist from Brisbane, Australia.

The idea he is proposing is a 3D printed robotic flower method to help the bees. He calls it the Synthetic Pollenizer and although it’s currently a conceptual project, it’s certainly an interesting solution.

Essentially, robotic flowers are hopefully safer for bees to pollinate than real fauna as they have no pesticides. Instead, they are all equipped with pollen and nectar which comes up to the flower when needed. They’re also hidden amongst real plants, encouraging bees to pollinate and also to breed.

“Bees are a vital part of our ecosystem, I feel that everyone needs to take the time and get to know these hard workers that keep our plants and crops pollinated. It is common knowledge that bee population is suffering worldwide due to pesticides, climate change and Varroa mites – for these problems we can find solutions,”  Candy explained.

Find out more about the Synthetic Pollenizer in Candy’s video:

Tricking the Bees with a Synthetic Flower

In order to attract the bees, a man-made nectar solution of sugar and water reaches the false flower’s surface. Candy uses servos and actuators to distribute nectar and pollen to the flowers.

After a lot of trial and error, the 3D printed petals and synthetic stamen should now be convincing enough to fool the bees. Candy explains that it has taken years to successfully coax them into landing on the 3D printed petals. He explains that color and form are crucial considerations.

To collect the pollen, Candy uses a “pollen trap” in the beehives. This isn’t as cruel as it sounds and is essentially a front door mat for bees. It fits over a hive entrance and collects leftover pollen from a bee’s legs.

The collected pollen is fed through the synthetic stamen. And, if everything goes to plan, the bees pick up this pollen as normal. Candy adds:

“Bees are easily the most utilitarian pollinators used in industrial agriculture and they are suffering from a variety of environmental problems. Perhaps in a future where designer crops are no longer able to produce pollen yet still receive it – then the Synthetic Pollenizer could rehabilitate the reproductive cycle of these genetically modified crops.”

However, perhaps an easier way to save the creatures is to simply force farmers to not use pesticides during the hours when bees are flying but rather early in the morning or late at night. This would certainly save a lot of 3D printing time and energy.

Source: Dezeen

Website: LINK

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Researchers have taken CT scans of preserved Tasmanian tiger joeys to help give them a better insight into the extinct animal and learn about the early development phases of the marsupials.

Tasmanian tigers were driven to extinction by hunters. Sadly, the last living Tasmanian tiger died in Hobart Zoo in 1936. However, 13 ethanol-preserved joeys remain.

Called a tiger due to its striped lower back, the animal is now the interest of study at the University of Melbourne, Australia. The preserved joeys are offering an insight into the animal’s early development phases.

Researchers used technology such as CT scans, to record changes in the animal’s skeleton and organs while it was growing in its mother’s pouch. Dr. Andrew Pask found that they begin life looking like other marsupials, but move towards looking more like dogs towards the end of the time in the pouch. However, they wanted to show the exact point at which this happens.

“So, when they’re first born they have these really well-developed forearms to be able to crawl from their mother’s urogenital sinus up to the pouch, and a really well developed jaw to be able to latch on to the teat. That’s quite different to us, or a mouse, say.It’s only really late on that they grow the extended hind limbs to give them that dog appearance,” he explains.

Tracking Down the Tasmanian Tiger Specimens

The process of getting the 13 ethanol-preserved joeys wasn’t easy. Four of the joeys were held in Prague, Czech Republic.

Meanwhile, two specimens, sent from the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery, weren’t Tasmanian Tigers at all. The researchers believe they were but quolls or Tasmanian devils which had been mixed up with the tigers.

However, once all were collected, the specimens were CT scanned. The animals were aged between 1.5 and 12 weeks.  This enabled the scientists to dissect the joeys and build 3D models. They also 3D printed the models to get a better look too.

“Until now, there have only been limited details on growth and development. For the very first time we have been able to look inside these remarkably rare and precious specimens,” said Axel Newton, a PhD student and lead author on the Royal Society paper describing the investigation.

The aim for the researchers now is to find out how and why the marsupials evolved to be so similar to dogs. Especially as their last common ancestor lived about 160 million years ago. But, they hope that with these scans and genetic work, they’ll be able to come to some conclusions.

In the far distant future, the researchers also hope to be able to bring back a Tasmanian tiger. This could work by using another animal’s cells as a scaffold and inserting the genome to try and reconstruct the tiger. However, this is a long way off for now.

Source: BBC

Website: LINK