Circular Economy, 3D Printing, and the Biosphere Rules

2018 ◽  
Vol 60 (3) ◽  
pp. 95-111 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gregory Unruh
Keyword(s):  
3D Printing ◽  
Circular Economy ◽  
Sustainable Manufacturing ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Spare Parts ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Management Framework ◽  
Environmentally Sustainable ◽  
Industrial Sectors ◽  
Cradle To Cradle

This article applies the Biosphere Rules—a biomimicry-inspired management framework for circular economy initiatives—to the emerging field of additive manufacturing and three-dimensional (3D) Printing, which are revolutionizing industrial sectors from medical devices to spare parts. They are also potentially keys in the emergence of a true circular economy that will bring about environmentally sustainable manufacturing. This article lays out an established strategy that can guide managers and policy makers in pursuit of a cradle-to-cradle economy.

scholarly journals An Innovative Visualization Tool to Boost and Monitor Circular Economy: An Overview of Its Applications at Different Industrial Sectors

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Augusto Bianchini ◽  
Jessica Rossi
Keyword(s):  
Circular Economy ◽  
Quantitative Methods ◽  
Effective Means ◽  
Quantitative Information ◽  
Practical Implementation ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Industrial Sectors ◽  
Need To Evaluate ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Economic And Social Impacts

The quantification of the circular economy and sustainability is a relevant aspect at different levels of applications: (i) the companies need to evaluate and improve the environmental, economic, and social impacts of their products and processes; (ii) the financial bodies must have quantitative information about the potential and risks of different proposed initiatives to select the optimal opportunity; and (iii) the policy-makers must be guided for the coherent definition of strategies at regional, national and international scales, setting realistic targets and measuring their effectiveness. However, the lack of comprehensive and robust approaches to quantify circular economy makes it challenging to apply quantitative methods and indicators in different contexts and compare the results, with the risk of limiting the practical implementation of circular initiatives due to unknown and/or unclear potential and contribution. The ViVACE® tool (Visualization of Value to Assess Circular Economy), developed by the authors, is a promising and effective means to collect data in a systematized manner, helpful to assess sectorial and cross-sectorial indicators about sustainability. It has been applied to different industrial sectors (e.g., plastics, food processing, textile) for different purposes. These applications are described in detail to highlight the potential, versatility, and implications of the proposed tool in boosting the effective transition to a circular economy.

scholarly journals Three-dimensional printing in healthcare

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
A. I. Pérez-Sanpablo
Keyword(s):  
3D Printing ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Medical Personnel ◽  
Spare Parts ◽  
Initial Examination ◽  
Advantages And Disadvantages ◽  
Main Challenge ◽  
Narrative Literature ◽  
Narrative Literature Review ◽  
The Cost

This work aims to briefly present the cutting edge of 3D printing innovation in healthcare. This technology is used for surgical planning, medical education, bioprinting of tissues, and medical equipment spare parts in fields like pharmacology, prosthetics, surgery, and regenerative medicine. A review of the last decade was made in the search engines of PubMed and Espacenet. Three authors reviewed titles, abstracts, and keywords separately to identify studies appropriate to the topic. After the initial examination, complete texts of identified relevant studies were obtained and classified according to the authors. Results were synthesized in a narrative literature review. The revision showed that 3D printing has become of common use in the healthcare system since it allows medical personnel to implement customized solutions for each patient, thus reducing the probability of a false diagnostic or treatment. Major applications among the advantages and disadvantages of 3D printing in healthcare were presented. Nowadays, the main challenge in 3D printing is the cost of the equipment and its manufacturing. In the future, the challenges in cost could be reduced, but processing requirements and limited materials may still need further work.

scholarly journals The Effect of Chemical Cleaning on Mechanical Properties of Three-Dimensional Printed Polylactic Acid

2020 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Julie C. Fleischer ◽  
Jan C. Diehl ◽  
Linda S. G. L. Wauben ◽  
Jenny Dankelman
Keyword(s):  
Mechanical Properties ◽  
3D Printing ◽  
Polylactic Acid ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Spare Parts ◽  
Healthcare Sector ◽  
Strength Increase ◽  
Chemical Cleaning ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
3D Printed

Abstract Three-dimensional (3D) printing may be a solution to shortages of equipment and spare parts in the healthcare sector of low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Polylactic acid (PLA) for 3D printing is widely available and biocompatible, but there is a gap in knowledge concerning its compatibility with chemical disinfectants. In this study, 3D-printed PLA tensile samples were created with six different printer settings. Each of these six batches consisted of five sets with five or six samples. The first set remained untreated, the others were soaked in Cidex OPA or in a chlorine solution. These were applied for seven consecutive days or in 25 short cycles. All samples were weighed before and after treatment and subjected to a tensile test. Results showed that a third of the treatments led to an increase of the median weight with a maximum of 8.3%, however, the samples with the best surface quality did not change. The median strength increase was 12.5% and the largest decrease was 8.8%. The median stiffness decreased 3.6% in one set and increased in three others up to 13.6%. When 3D printing PLA medical tools, surface porosity must be minimized to prevent transfer of disinfectants to people. The wide variability of mechanical properties due to 3D printing itself and as a consequence of disinfection must be considered when designing medical tools by selecting appropriate printer settings. If these conditions are met, reusing 3D-printed PLA medical tools seems safe from a mechanical point of view.

Disruptive Technology as an Enabler of the Circular Economy: What Potential Does 3D Printing Hold?

2018 ◽  
Vol 60 (3) ◽  
pp. 112-132 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alysia Garmulewicz ◽  
Matthias Holweg ◽  
Hans Veldhuis ◽  
Aidong Yang
Keyword(s):  
3D Printing ◽  
Value Chain ◽  
Circular Economy ◽  
Technology Policy ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Disruptive Technology ◽  
Novel Technology ◽  
Efficiency And Effectiveness ◽  
Social Organizational

Three-dimensional (3D) printing has been widely identified as an emerging disruptive technology. This study examines how this technology could enable the circular economy by disrupting the existing materials value chain. Specifically, could this novel technology be used to locally manufacture new goods from local sources of recycled plastic waste, thereby offering benefits for the efficiency and effectiveness of materials cycling? This article uses the London metropolitan area—where system conditions already exist in the form of material flows, technology policy, and facilities—in order to assess 3D printing’s viability as an enabler of a circular economy at the local level. An analysis of stakeholder perceptions identifies economic, technological, social, organizational, and regulatory barriers to mainstream implementation, and their likelihood of being overcome.

3D Printing Spare Parts via IP Licensing Contracts

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yue Zhang ◽  
Bram Westerweel ◽  
Rob J.I. Basten ◽  
Jing-Sheng Jeannette Song
Keyword(s):  
3D Printing ◽  
Spare Parts

scholarly journals Efficacy evaluation of three-dimensional printing assisted osteotomy guide plate in accurate osteotomy of adolescent cubitus varus deformity

2019 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuan-Wei Zhang ◽  
Xin Xiao ◽  
Wen-Cheng Gao ◽  
Yan Xiao ◽  
Su-Li Zhang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
3D Printing ◽  
Blood Loss ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Operation Time ◽  
Varus Deformity ◽  
Conventional Group ◽  
Intraoperative Blood Loss ◽  
Cubitus Varus ◽  
Guide Plate ◽  
Significant Difference

Abstract Background This present study is aimed to retrospectively assess the efficacy of three-dimensional (3D) printing assisted osteotomy guide plate in accurate osteotomy of adolescent cubitus varus deformity. Material and methods Twenty-five patients (15 males and 10 females) with the cubitus varus deformity from June 2014 to December 2017 were included in this study and were enrolled into the conventional group (n = 11) and 3D printing group (n = 14) according to the different surgical approaches. The operation time, intraoperative blood loss, osteotomy degrees, osteotomy end union time, and postoperative complications between the two groups were observed and recorded. Results Compared with the conventional group, the 3D printing group has the advantages of shorter operation time, less intraoperative blood loss, higher rate of excellent correction, and higher rate of the parents’ excellent satisfaction with appearance after deformity correction (P < 0.001, P < 0.001, P = 0.019, P = 0.023). Nevertheless, no significant difference was presented in postoperative carrying angle of the deformed side and total complication rate between the two groups (P = 0.626, P = 0.371). Conclusions The operation assisted by 3D printing osteotomy guide plate to correct the adolescent cubitus varus deformity is feasible and effective, which might be an optional approach to promote the accurate osteotomy and optimize the efficacy.

scholarly journals Three-dimensional(3D) printing in forensic science–An emerging technology in India

2021 ◽  
Vol 1 ◽  
pp. 100006
Author(s):  
Gargi Jani ◽  
Abraham Johnson ◽  
Jeidson Marques ◽  
Ademir Franco
Keyword(s):  
3D Printing ◽  
Forensic Science ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Emerging Technology

scholarly journals Efficient 3D printing via photooxidation of ketocoumarin based photopolymerization

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiaoyu Zhao ◽  
Ye Zhao ◽  
Ming-De Li ◽  
Zhong’an Li ◽  
Haiyan Peng ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Additive Manufacturing ◽  
3D Printing ◽  
Visible Light ◽  
Light Exposure ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
3D Printer ◽  
Light Penetration ◽  
Viable Solution

AbstractPhotopolymerization-based three-dimensional (3D) printing can enable customized manufacturing that is difficult to achieve through other traditional means. Nevertheless, it remains challenging to achieve efficient 3D printing due to the compromise between print speed and resolution. Herein, we report an efficient 3D printing approach based on the photooxidation of ketocoumarin that functions as the photosensitizer during photopolymerization, which can simultaneously deliver high print speed (5.1 cm h−1) and high print resolution (23 μm) on a common 3D printer. Mechanistically, the initiating radical and deethylated ketocoumarin are both generated upon visible light exposure, with the former giving rise to rapid photopolymerization and high print speed while the latter ensuring high print resolution by confining the light penetration. By comparison, the printed feature is hard to identify when the ketocoumarin encounters photoreduction due to the increased lateral photopolymerization. The proposed approach here provides a viable solution towards efficient additive manufacturing by controlling the photoreaction of photosensitizers during photopolymerization.

scholarly journals Comparative Study of Silk Fibroin-Based Hydrogels and Their Potential as Material for 3-Dimensional (3D) Printing

Molecules ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 26 (13) ◽  
pp. 3887
Author(s):  
Watcharapong Pudkon ◽  
Chavee Laomeephol ◽  
Siriporn Damrongsakkul ◽  
Sorada Kanokpanont ◽  
Juthamas Ratanavaraporn
Keyword(s):  
3D Printing ◽  
Silk Fibroin ◽  
Biomedical Applications ◽  
Mechanical Stability ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Structure Stability ◽  
3 Dimensional ◽  
Critical Technology ◽  
Box Structure ◽  
High Degree

Three-dimensional (3D) printing is regarded as a critical technology in material engineering for biomedical applications. From a previous report, silk fibroin (SF) has been used as a biomaterial for tissue engineering due to its biocompatibility, biodegradability, non-toxicity and robust mechanical properties which provide a potential as material for 3D-printing. In this study, SF-based hydrogels with different formulations and SF concentrations (1–3%wt) were prepared by natural gelation (SF/self-gelled), sodium tetradecyl sulfate-induced (SF/STS) and dimyristoyl glycerophosphorylglycerol-induced (SF/DMPG). From the results, 2%wt SF-based (2SF) hydrogels showed suitable properties for extrusion, such as storage modulus, shear-thinning behavior and degree of structure recovery. The 4-layer box structure of all 2SF-based hydrogel formulations could be printed without structural collapse. In addition, the mechanical stability of printed structures after three-step post-treatment was investigated. The printed structure of 2SF/STS and 2SF/DMPG hydrogels exhibited high stability with high degree of structure recovery as 70.4% and 53.7%, respectively, compared to 2SF/self-gelled construct as 38.9%. The 2SF/STS and 2SF/DMPG hydrogels showed a great potential to use as material for 3D-printing due to its rheological properties, printability and structure stability.

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