Researchers from the University of Birmingham have designed a type of recyclable resin for use in 3D printing applications, made from biosourced materials.
They said that high-resolution, 3D-printed structures can be manufactured from an entirely bio-sourced feedstock, which can be recycled within an almost fully closed-loop system. The feedstock is made from lipoic acid, which is commonly sold as a dietary supplement.
Lead researcher Professor Andrew Dove said: Our approach is an important step away from relying on 3D-printable resins made from petrochemicals, which cannot be efficiently recycled. While we still have improvements to make to the properties of the new resin, this research opens up exciting avenues for development.
The Birmingham team said its photopolymer resin can be printed at high resolution and then be broken back down to its constituent parts, recycled and reprinted, with the addition of just a small amount of photoinitiator to retain hardening properties.
Fuente: Materials Recycling World