3D printing ceramics without supports! 🤯
Researchers developed a method that lets you print unsupported, large-span ceramic structures.
For example things like torsion springs, cantilevers, and 3D bends, without needing support scaffolding during printing.
That’s huge because supports add time, waste, and can damage parts when removed.
The trick combines direct ink writing with near-infrared-assisted photopolymerization (tbh needed to look that up: process where light, often UV, triggers small molecules to link together).
During extrusion, a photosensitive ceramic slurry cures in situ under NIR light, solidifying as it’s deposited and keeping the shape stable even over long horizontal spans.
This lets ceramic filaments of different sizes, from sub-millimeter to millimeter scale, harden fast and hold shape mid-air.
Structures that would normally sag or collapse without supports now print reliably, with good surface quality and structural precision.
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