Home > Press > New printing process advances 3D capabilities: Technology aims to improve quality of products used in business, industry and at home
This tensile object was created using 3D injection printing, a new technology invented by UMass Lowell Plastics Engineering Prof. David Kazmer. CREDIT David Kazmer |
Abstract:
More durable prosthetics and medical devices for patients and stronger parts for airplanes and automobiles are just some of the products that could be created through a new 3D printing technology invented by a UMass Lowell researcher.
New printing process advances 3D capabilities: Technology aims to improve quality of products used in business, industry and at home
Lowell, MA | Posted on July 31st, 2020
Substances such as plastics, metals and wax are used in 3D printers to make products and parts for larger items, as the practice has disrupted the prototyping and manufacturing fields. Products created through the 3D printing of plastics include everything from toys to drones. While the global market for 3D plastics printers is estimated at $4 billion and growing, challenges remain in ensuring the printers create objects that are produced quickly, retain their strength and accurately reflect the shape desired, according to UMass Lowell’s David Kazmer, a plastics engineering professor who led the research project.
Called injection printing, the technology Kazmer pioneered is featured in the academic journal Additive Manufacturing posted online last week.
The invention combines elements of 3D printing and injection molding, a technique through which objects are created by filling mold cavities with molten materials. The marriage of the two processes increases the production rate of 3D printing, while enhancing the strength and properties of the resulting products. The innovation typically produces objects about three times faster than conventional 3D printing, which means jobs that once took about nine hours now only take three, according to Kazmer, who lives in Georgetown.
“The invention greatly improves the quality of the parts produced, making them fully dense with few cracks or voids, so they are much stronger. For technical applications, this is game-changing. The new process is also cost-effective because it can be used in existing 3D printers, with only new software to program the machine needed,” Kazmer said.
The process took about 18 months to develop. Austin Colon of Plymouth, a UMass Lowell Ph.D. candidate in plastics engineering, helped validate the technology alongside Kazmer, who teaches courses in product design, prototyping and process control, among other topics. He has filed for a patent on the new technology.
####
About University of Massachusetts Lowell
UMass Lowell is a national research university located on a high-energy campus in the heart of a global community. The university offers its more than 18,000 students bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees in business, education, engineering, fine arts, health, humanities, sciences and social sciences. UMass Lowell delivers high-quality educational programs, vigorous hands-on learning and personal attention from leading faculty and staff, all of which prepare graduates to be leaders in their communities and around the globe.
For more information, please click here
Contacts:
Nancy Cicco
978-934-4944
@UMassLowell
Copyright © University of Massachusetts Lowell
If you have a comment, please Contact us.
Issuers of news releases, not 7th Wave, Inc. or Nanotechnology Now, are solely responsible for the accuracy of the content.
Related Links |
Related News Press |
News and information
Way, shape and form: Synthesis conditions define the nanostructure of manganese dioxide July 31st, 2020
TU Graz researchers synthesize nanoparticles tailored for special applications July 31st, 2020
Scientists discover new class of semiconducting entropy-stabilized materials July 31st, 2020
Nanoreactor strategy generates superior supported bimetallic catalysts July 31st, 2020
3D & 4D printing/Additive-manufacturing
Printed perovskite LEDs: An innovative technique towards a new standard process of electronics manufacturing June 12th, 2020
Researchers mimic nature for fast, colorful 3D printing June 10th, 2020
Possible Futures
Way, shape and form: Synthesis conditions define the nanostructure of manganese dioxide July 31st, 2020
TU Graz researchers synthesize nanoparticles tailored for special applications July 31st, 2020
Scientists discover new class of semiconducting entropy-stabilized materials July 31st, 2020
Nanoreactor strategy generates superior supported bimetallic catalysts July 31st, 2020
Discoveries
Physicists find misaligned carbon sheets yield unparalleled properties July 31st, 2020
Way, shape and form: Synthesis conditions define the nanostructure of manganese dioxide July 31st, 2020
TU Graz researchers synthesize nanoparticles tailored for special applications July 31st, 2020
Nanoreactor strategy generates superior supported bimetallic catalysts July 31st, 2020
Announcements
Way, shape and form: Synthesis conditions define the nanostructure of manganese dioxide July 31st, 2020
TU Graz researchers synthesize nanoparticles tailored for special applications July 31st, 2020
Scientists discover new class of semiconducting entropy-stabilized materials July 31st, 2020
Nanoreactor strategy generates superior supported bimetallic catalysts July 31st, 2020
Interviews/Book Reviews/Essays/Reports/Podcasts/Journals/White papers/Posters
Physicists find misaligned carbon sheets yield unparalleled properties July 31st, 2020
Way, shape and form: Synthesis conditions define the nanostructure of manganese dioxide July 31st, 2020
TU Graz researchers synthesize nanoparticles tailored for special applications July 31st, 2020
Nanoreactor strategy generates superior supported bimetallic catalysts July 31st, 2020
Printing/Lithography/Inkjet/Inks/Bio-printing/Dyes
Printed perovskite LEDs: An innovative technique towards a new standard process of electronics manufacturing June 12th, 2020
Researchers mimic nature for fast, colorful 3D printing June 10th, 2020
Large scale integrated circuits produced in printing press: All-printed large-scale integrated circuits based on organic electrochemical transistors November 15th, 2019
Highest-throughput 3D printer is future of manufacturing: Rapid manufacturing on-demand could put warehouses, molds into the past October 17th, 2019