Recyclable and biocompatible microgel-based supporting system for positive 3D freeform printing of silicone rubber
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ORIGINAL ARTICLE
Recyclable and biocompatible microgel‑based supporting system for positive 3D freeform printing of silicone rubber Wen See Tan1 · Qian Shi1 · Shengyang Chen1 · Muhammad Aidil Bin Juhari1 · Juha Song1,2 Received: 1 August 2020 / Revised: 15 September 2020 / Accepted: 21 September 2020 © Korean Society of Medical and Biological Engineering 2020
Abstract Additive manufacturing (AM) of biomaterials has evolved from a rapid prototyping tool into a viable approach for the manufacturing of patient-specific implants over the past decade. It can tailor to the unique physiological and anatomical criteria of the patient’s organs or bones through precise controlling of the structure during the 3D printing. Silicone elastomers, which is a major group of materials in many biomedical implants, have low viscosities and can be printed with a special AM platform, known as freeform 3D printing systems. The freeform 3D printing systems are composed of a supporting bath and a printing material. Current supporting matrices that are either commercially purchased or synthesized were usually disposed of after retrieval of the printed part. In this work, we proposed a new and improved supporting matrix comprises of synthesized calcium alginate microgels produced via encapsulation which can be recycled, reused, and recovered for multiple prints, hence minimizing wastage and cost of materials. The dehydration tolerance of the calcium alginate microgels was improved through physical means by the addition of glycerol and chemical means by developing new calcium alginate microgels encapsulated with glycerol. The recyclability of the heated calcium alginate microgels was also enhanced by a rehydration step with sodium chloride solution and a recovery step with calcium chloride solution via the ion exchange process. We envisaged that our reusable and recyclable biocompatible calcium alginate microgels can save material costs, time, and can be applied in various freeform 3D printing systems. Keywords Freeform 3D printing · Hydrogel-based supporting matrix · Calcium alginate microgels · Silicone elastomer
1 Introduction Over the last decade, additive manufacturing (AM) in the biomedical field, also known as bioprinting, has developed from a rapid prototyping tool to a viable approach for the production of patient-specific implants. It enables precise three-dimensional regulation of structure and material properties adapted to the specific anatomical and physiological requirements of the patient’s organs or bones [1]. Particularly, silicone elastomers are one of the widely used biomaterials for surgical implants as well as many other biomedical devices such as prosthetic, transdermal therapeutic systems, * Juha Song [email protected] 1
School of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore 639798, Singapore
Singapore Centre for 3D Printing, School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore 639798, Singapore
2
and orthodontics [2]. However,
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