Browsing by Subject "Additive Manufacturing"

Now showing 1 - 2 of 2
  • No Thumbnail Available
    Item
    Open Access
    Development of a Prototype Embedded 3D Printer with Dual Ink-Gel Extrusion Capability
    (2025-12-12) Van Driel, Adrian; Govender, Reuben A.
    3D printing has advanced significantly, enabling new applications such as embedded 3D printing for materials that solidify slowly. This method prints liquid materials into a support gel that holds their shape while curing. This project developed the dual ink-gel extruder (DIGEX) to address the limitations in the print volume seen in previous projects and to enable the simultaneous extrusion of material and support gel. Various sub-assemblies and deposition techniques were tested to optimise performance. While DIGEX successfully demonstrated the concept, difficulties remain in scaling for large-format printing, requiring further refinement in hardware, software, and process configurations.
  • No Thumbnail Available
    Item
    Metadata only
    Support Bath Deposition for Embedded 3D Printing
    (2020-12-30) Masters, Jessica Siobhan Shelagh; Govender, Reuben
    In recent years, the prinKng of som constructs has been aided by the development of embedded 3D printing. A notable form of embedded 3D printing known as freeform reversible embedding of suspended hydrogels (FRESH) was developed and published by Hinton et al in 2015. In FRESH, the print material is deposited into a gel-like support bath which is removed once the print material has set . One of the primary limitations in embedded 3D printing is the size of the support bath. This project aimed to solve this issue through the development of a gel deposition system. A variety of parameters, including nozzle shape and size, the motion of the nozzle and the temperature of the support gel were considered. A peristaltic pump was developed in order to deliver gel to the deposition nozzle. The various components for the gel deposition system were designed, manufactured and assembled, and the effects of motion and temperature on the quality of the support bath and print material were tested. The results of these tests were qualitatively assessed. The testing outcomes indicated that, with further development, the deposition could feasibly be used to deliver support bath material in embedded 3D printing.