When it comes to 3D printing, the sky is the limit. As 3D printing technology continues to advance, applications can be as far reaching as airplane and automobile parts to medical devices and even anatomically correct, biocompatible models. Although 3D printing technology is developing at a rapid pace, the technology itself is not new. It emerged in the 1980s as a means of creating rapid prototypes. In recent years the applications for 3D printed models have evolved with the available hardware, software, and printable materials. Evolving technology, paired with the creative and innovative minds of scientists, engineers, and physicians, has been the launching pad for developments within 3D printing technology specific to healthcare. One way 3D printing technology is poised to create better patient outcomes is in creating an anatomically and patient-specific models to aid in surgery and medical procedures. With the capability to 3D ...
Scratches in table lacquer or automotive paint that fix themselves. Eyeglasses, toys, and other plastics that go back together without glue and by simply holding the two pieces back together. The science of self-healing polymer can make those situations reality.
Science correspondent Richard Gray writes in the U.K.’s The Telegraph about scientists at the chemical company AkzoNobel and the Eindhoven University of Technology in the Netherlands who are working on a supramolecular polymer that requires just a bit of mechanical force to repair when broken.
Other researchers have developed materials that fall into the category of self-healing polymers. For example, some of the materials can be “fixed” by exposing the material to a UV light or when microcapsules in the material burst open.This new polymer can be cut apart completely, pushed back together with bare hands, and be as strong as before the cut.
Bert Meijer, a materials engineer at the Eindhoven University of Technology, told The Telegraph, “Our supramolecular polymers have unique dynamic properties while are still as strong as traditional plastic.”
The researchers told Gray that Supra B could lead to scratch-resistant coatings for vehicles, laptops, or other consumer goods. They add that the polymer “could be used in car chassis to avoid the need for expensive repair after an accident.”
Gray explains the chemistry that is responsible for this self-healing feature:
The new plastic, which has been called Supra B, takes advantage of a kind of bonding that gives water its viscosity and surface tension. Known as hydrogen bonding, it uses the attraction between hydrogen atoms and other atoms such as oxygen or nitrogen.In Supra B, the scientists have managed to quadruple the number of hydrogen bonds between the small plastic, or polymer, molecules so that it is as strong as other forms of plastic, but does not require a chemical reaction to join them together.
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