Open-Source Script for Design and 3D Printing of Porous Structures for Soil Science

Three-dimensional (3D) printing in soil science is relatively rare but offers promising directions for research. Having 3D-printed soil samples will help academics and researchers conduct experiments in a reproducible and participatory research network and gain a better understanding of the studied soil parameters. One of the most important challenges in utilizing 3D printing techniques for soil modeling is the manufacturing of a soil structure. Until now, the most widespread method for printing porous soil structures is based on scanning a real sample via X-ray tomography. The aim of this paper is to design a porous soil structure based on mathematical models rather than on samples themselves. This can allow soil scientists to design and parameterize their samples according to their desired experiments. An open-source toolchain is developed using a Lua script, in the IceSL slicer, with graphical user interface to enable researchers to create and configure their digital soil models, called monoliths, without using meshing algorithms or STL files which reduce the resolution of the model. Examples of monoliths are 3D-printed in polylactic acid using fused filament fabrication technology with a layer thickness of 0.20, 0.12, and 0.08 mm. The images generated from the digital model slicing are analyzed using open-source ImageJ software to obtain information about internal geometrical shape, porosity, tortuosity, grain size distribution, and hydraulic conductivities. The results show that the developed script enables designing reproducible numerical models that imitate soil structures with defined pore and grain sizes in a range between coarse sand (from 1 mm diameter) to fine gravel (up to 12 mm diameter).

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Novel open-source 3D-printed eye mount (TEMPO) for the ophthalmology wet lab

BMJ Open Ophthalmology ◽

10.1136/bmjophth-2020-000685 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 6 (1) ◽

pp. e000685

Author(s):

Michael Mak ◽

Yejun Hong ◽

William Murray Trask ◽

Randy Thompson ◽

Helen Chung ◽

...

Keyword(s):

3D Printing ◽

Open Source ◽

Surgical Training ◽

Computer Aided Design ◽

Anatomical Variation ◽

Three Dimensional ◽

Computer Assisted ◽

3D Printed ◽

Wet Lab ◽

Facial Contours

ObjectiveProcuring an affordable eye mount that can stabilise a cadaveric eye and simulate a patient’s normal facial contours represents an ongoing challenge in the ophthalmology simulation wet lab, with notable limitations to all currently available commercial options. This project uses computer-assisted design and three-dimensional (3D)-printing techniques to tackle these challenges for ophthalmologic surgical training.Methods and AnalysisProof-of-concept study. Using Autodesk Fusion 360, we designed and 3D-printed a modular device that consists of 11 pieces forming a head structure. Standard OR tubing and syringes were adapted to create an adjustable-suction system to affix cadaveric eyes. Further modular inserts were customised to house non-cadaveric simulation eyes.ResultsThree-dimensional eye mount for procedures in ophthalmology (TEMPO) reliably fixed a cadaveric eye in stable position throughout surgical manipulation. Trainees were able to drape and practice appropriate hand positioning while corneal suturing. Overall, this model was affordable, at a cost of approximately $C200 to print. The modular nature renders individual pieces convenient for replacement and customisable to simulate regional anatomical variation and accommodate non-cadaveric eyes.ConclusionsTEMPO represents an affordable, high-fidelity alternative to existing commercially available eye mounts. It reliably fixates cadaveric and simulation eyes and provides an enhanced surgical training experience by way of its realistic facial contours. It is released as an open-source computer-aided design file, customisable to interested trainees with appropriate software and 3D-printing capacity.

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FINDUS: An Open-Source 3D Printable Liquid-Handling Workstation for Laboratory Automation in Life Sciences

SLAS TECHNOLOGY Translating Life Sciences Innovation ◽

10.1177/2472630319877374 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 25 (2) ◽

pp. 190-199 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Fabian Barthels ◽

Ulrich Barthels ◽

Marvin Schwickert ◽

Tanja Schirmeister

Keyword(s):

3D Printing ◽

Open Source ◽

Source Code ◽

Life Sciences ◽

3D Models ◽

Laboratory Automation ◽

Liquid Handling ◽

Utility System ◽

Assembly Instructions ◽

3D Printed

3D-printed laboratory devices can enable ambitious research purposes even at a low-budget level. To follow this trend, here we describe the construction, calibration, and usage of the FINDUS (Fully Integrable Noncommercial Dispensing Utility System). We report the successful 3D printing and assembly of a liquid-handling workstation for less than $400. Using this setup, we achieve reliable and flexible liquid-dispensing automation with relative pipetting errors of less than 0.3%. We show our system is well suited for several showcase applications from both the biology and chemistry fields. In support of the open-source spirit, we make all 3D models, assembly instructions, and source code available for free download, rebuild, and modification.

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An open source toolkit for 3D printed fluidics

Journal of Flow Chemistry ◽

10.1007/s41981-020-00117-2 ◽

2020 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Adam J. N. Price ◽

Andrew J. Capel ◽

Robert J. Lee ◽

Patrick Pradel ◽

Steven D. R. Christie

Keyword(s):

3D Printing ◽

Open Source ◽

Low Cost ◽

Flow Chemistry ◽

3D Modelling ◽

Basic Flow ◽

Chip Design ◽

Design Modification ◽

3D Printed ◽

Flow Components

Abstract As 3D printing technologies become more accessible, chemists are beginning to design and develop their own bespoke printable devices particularly applied to the field of flow chemistry. Designing functional flow components can often be a lengthy and laborious process requiring complex 3D modelling and multiple design iterations. In this work, we present an easy to follow design workflow for minimising the complexity of this design optimization process. The workflow follows the development of a 3D printable ‘toolkit’ of common fittings and connectors required for constructing basic flow chemistry configurations. The toolkit components consist of male threaded nuts, junction connectors and a Luer adapter. The files have themselves been made freely available and open source. The low cost associated with the toolkit may encourage educators to incorporate flow chemistry practical work into their syllabus such that students may be introduced to the principles of flow chemistry earlier on in their education and furthermore, may develop an early appreciation of the benefits of 3D printing in scientific research. In addition to the printable toolkit, the use of the 3D modelling platform – Rhino3D has been demonstrated for its application in fluidic reactor chip design modification. The simple user interface of the programme reduces the complexity and workload involved in printable fluidic reactor design.

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Effects of slicing parameters on measured fill density for 3D printing of precision cylindrical constructs using Slic3r

SN Applied Sciences ◽

10.1007/s42452-021-04398-7 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 3 (3) ◽

Author(s):

Prashanth Ravi ◽

Panos S. Shiakolas

Keyword(s):

3D Printing ◽

Open Source ◽

Matrix Material ◽

Maximum Error ◽

Drug Release Rate ◽

Reasonable Degree ◽

3D Printed ◽

Parametric Relationships ◽

The Relationship ◽

Insight Into

AbstractThe goal of this research is to develop and verify an algorithm to predict the fill density of 3D printed cylindrical constructs as a function of critical slicing parameters. Open-source 3D printing is being applied to the pharmaceutical and biomedical domains where characteristics including drug release rate and compressive strength depend on fill density. Understanding how slicing parameters affect fill density in the printed construct is important to appropriately tailor these characteristics. In this study, we evaluated the relationship between slicing fill density (SFD), extrusion width (EW), layer height (LH), construct diameter and measured fill density (MFD). The developed algorithm provides novel insight into the effects of interconnects and rasters on the distribution of intra-matrix material. We analyze 27 combinations involving 3 levels of EW (0.40, 0.44, 0.48 mm), SFD (15, 25, 35%) and LH (0.15, 0.20, 0.25 mm). The SFD is smaller than and deviates from MFD with a maximum error of 18.62% and from predicted fill density (PFD) with a maximum error of 19.50% compared to the maximum error of 4.30% between PFD and MFD. The predicted interconnect contribution and error reduce with increasing SFD and cylinder diameter but are more prominent at lower values. Our work highlights the perils of employing open-source 3D printing without a sound understanding of the underlying parametric relationships. The proposed predictive model could be used in conjunction with Slic3r, an open-source slicing software, to predict fill density to a reasonable degree of accuracy (less than 5% error) for relatively smaller cylindrical constructs.

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A Portable 3D-Printed Platform for Point-of-Care Diagnosis of Clostridium Difficile Infection and Malaria

10.26434/chemrxiv.7640414 ◽

2019 ◽

Author(s):

Soichiro Tsuda ◽

Lewis A. Fraser ◽

Salah Sharabi ◽

Mohammed Hezwani ◽

Andrew Kinghorn ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Clostridium Difficile ◽

3D Printing ◽

Open Source ◽

Clostridium Difficile Infection ◽

Point Of Care ◽

Low Cost ◽

Clinical Applications ◽

Printing Technology ◽

3D Printing Technology ◽

3D Printed

Here, we integrate 3D-printing technology with low-cost open source electronics to develop a portable diagnostic platform suitable for a wide variety of diagnostic and sensing assays. We demonstrate two different clinical applications in the diagnosis of <i>Clostridium difficile</i> infection and malaria.

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Desktop 3D Printing: Key for Surgical Navigation in Acral Tumors?

Applied Sciences ◽

10.3390/app10248984 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 10 (24) ◽

pp. 8984

Author(s):

Rafael Moreta-Martinez ◽

José Antonio Calvo-Haro ◽

Rubén Pérez-Mañanes ◽

Mónica García-Sevilla ◽

Lydia Mediavilla-Santos ◽

...

Keyword(s):

3D Printing ◽

Open Source ◽

Surgical Navigation ◽

Tumor Resection ◽

Soft Tissue Sarcomas ◽

Patient Specific ◽

Deformation Analysis ◽

Camera Tracking ◽

Oncologic Surgery ◽

3D Printed

Surgical navigation techniques have shown potential benefits in orthopedic oncologic surgery. However, the translation of these results to acral tumor resection surgeries is challenging due to the large number of joints with complex movements of the affected areas (located in distal extremities). This study proposes a surgical workflow that combines an intraoperative open-source navigation software, based on a multi-camera tracking, with desktop three-dimensional (3D) printing for accurate navigation of these tumors. Desktop 3D printing was used to fabricate patient-specific 3D printed molds to ensure that the distal extremity is in the same position both in preoperative images and during image-guided surgery (IGS). The feasibility of the proposed workflow was evaluated in two clinical cases (soft-tissue sarcomas in hand and foot). The validation involved deformation analysis of the 3D-printed mold after sterilization, accuracy of the system in patient-specific 3D-printed phantoms, and feasibility of the workflow during the surgical intervention. The sterilization process did not lead to significant deformations of the mold (mean error below 0.20 mm). The overall accuracy of the system was 1.88 mm evaluated on the phantoms. IGS guidance was feasible during both surgeries, allowing surgeons to verify enough margin during tumor resection. The results obtained have demonstrated the viability of combining open-source navigation and desktop 3D printing for acral tumor surgeries. The suggested framework can be easily personalized to any patient and could be adapted to other surgical scenarios.

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Anisotropic Material Behaviors of 3D Printed Carbon-Fiber Polymer Composites With Open-Source Printers

Volume 1: Additive Manufacturing; Advanced Materials Manufacturing; Biomanufacturing; Life Cycle Engineering; Manufacturing Equipment and Automation ◽

10.1115/msec2021-62317 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Jordan Garcia ◽

Robert Harper ◽

Y. Charles Lu

Keyword(s):

Mechanical Properties ◽

Additive Manufacturing ◽

Carbon Fiber ◽

3D Printing ◽

Open Source ◽

Polymer Composites ◽

Mechanical Responses ◽

Manufacturing Technique ◽

3D Printed ◽

Traditional Manufacturing

Abstract Composite products are often created using traditional manufacturing methods such as compression or injection molding. Recently, additive manufacturing (3D printing) techniques have been used for fabricating composites. 3D printing is the process of producing three-dimensional parts through the successive combination of various layers of material. This layering effect in combination with exposure to ambient (or reduced) temperature and pressure cause the finished products to have inconsistent microstructures. The inconsistent microstructures along with the oriented reinforcing fibers create anisotropic parts with difficulty to predict mechanical properties. In this paper, the mechanical properties of fiber reinforced polymer composites produced by additive manufacturing technique (3D printing) and by traditional manufacturing technique (compression molding) were investigated. Three open-source 3D printers, i.e. FlashForge Dreamer, Tevo Tornado, and Prusa i3 Mk3, were used to fabricate bending samples from carbon-fiber reinforced ABS (acrylonitrile butadiene styrene). Results showed that there exist significant discrepancies and anisotropies in mechanical properties of 3D printed composites. First, the properties vary greatly among parts made from different printers. Secondly, the mechanical responses of 3D printed parts strongly depend upon the orientations of the filaments. Parts with the infill oriented along the length of the specimens showed the most favorable mechanical responses such as Young’s modulus, maximum strength, and toughness. Thirdly, all 3D printed parts exhibit inferior properties to those made by conventional manufacturing. Finally, theoretical modeling has been attempted to predict the mechanical responses of 3D printed products and can potentially be used to “design” the 3D printing processes to achieve the optimal performance.

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A Portable 3D-Printed Platform for Point-of-Care Diagnosis of Clostridium Difficile Infection and Malaria

10.26434/chemrxiv.7640414.v1 ◽

2019 ◽

Author(s):

Soichiro Tsuda ◽

Lewis A. Fraser ◽

Salah Sharabi ◽

Mohammed Hezwani ◽

Andrew Kinghorn ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Clostridium Difficile ◽

3D Printing ◽

Open Source ◽

Clostridium Difficile Infection ◽

Point Of Care ◽

Low Cost ◽

Clinical Applications ◽

Printing Technology ◽

3D Printing Technology ◽

3D Printed

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ANISOTROPIC MATERIAL BEHAVIORS OF 3D PRINTED CARBON-FIBER POLYMER COMPOSITES WITH OPEN-SOURCE PRINTERS

Journal of Manufacturing Science and Engineering ◽

10.1115/1.4051921 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-8

Author(s):

Jordan Garcia ◽

Robert Harper ◽

Y. Charles Lu

Keyword(s):

Mechanical Properties ◽

Additive Manufacturing ◽

Carbon Fiber ◽

3D Printing ◽

Open Source ◽

Polymer Composites ◽

Mechanical Responses ◽

Manufacturing Technique ◽

3D Printed ◽

Traditional Manufacturing

Abstract Composite products are often created using traditional manufacturing methods such as compression or injection molding. Recently, additive manufacturing (3D printing) techniques have been used for fabricating composites. 3D printing is the process of producing three-dimensional parts through the successive combination of various layers of material. This layering effect in combination with exposure to ambient (or reduced) temperature and pressure cause the finished products to have inconsistent microstructures. The inconsistent microstructures along with the oriented reinforcing fibers create anisotropic parts with difficulty to predict mechanical properties. In this paper, the mechanical properties of fiber reinforced polymer composites produced by additive manufacturing technique (3D printing) and by traditional manufacturing technique (compression molding) were investigated. Three open-source 3D printers, i.e. FlashForge Dreamer, Tevo Tornado, and Prusa i3 Mk3, were used to fabricate bending samples from carbon-fiber reinforced ABS (acrylonitrile butadiene styrene). Results showed that there exist significant discrepancies and anisotropies in mechanical properties of 3D printed composites. First, the properties vary greatly among parts made from different printers. Secondly, the mechanical responses of 3D printed parts strongly depend upon the orientations of the filaments. Parts with the infill oriented along the length of the specimens showed the most favorable mechanical responses such as Young's modulus, maximum strength, and toughness. Thirdly, all 3D printed parts exhibit inferior properties to those made by conventional manufacturing. Finally, theoretical modeling has been attempted to predict the mechanical responses of 3D printed products and can be used to “design” the 3D printing processes.

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Biodegradable 3D Printed Polymer Microneedles for Transdermal Drug Delivery

10.26434/chemrxiv.5851950.v1 ◽

2018 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Michael A. Luzuriaga ◽

Danielle R. Berry ◽

John C. Reagan ◽

Ronald A. Smaldone ◽

Jeremiah J. Gassensmith

Keyword(s):

Drug Delivery ◽

3D Printing ◽

Transdermal Drug Delivery ◽

Fused Deposition Modeling ◽

Fused Deposition ◽

Modeling Software ◽

Deposition Modeling ◽

3D Printed ◽

Microfabrication Technique ◽

Mechanical Strengths

Biodegradable polymer microneedle (MN) arrays are an emerging class of transdermal drug delivery devices that promise a painless and sanitary alternative to syringes; however, prototyping bespoke needle architectures is expensive and requires production of new master templates. Here, we present a new microfabrication technique for MNs using fused deposition modeling (FDM) 3D printing using polylactic acid, an FDA approved, renewable, biodegradable, thermoplastic material. We show how this natural degradability can be exploited to overcome a key challenge of FDM 3D printing, in particular the low resolution of these printers. We improved the feature size of the printed parts significantly by developing a post fabrication chemical etching protocol, which allowed us to access tip sizes as small as 1 μm. With 3D modeling software, various MN shapes were designed and printed rapidly with custom needle density, length, and shape. Scanning electron microscopy confirmed that our method resulted in needle tip sizes in the range of 1 – 55 µm, which could successfully penetrate and break off into porcine skin. We have also shown that these MNs have comparable mechanical strengths to currently fabricated MNs and we further demonstrated how the swellability of PLA can be exploited to load small molecule drugs and how its degradability in skin can release those small molecules over time.

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