3D and 4D printing

3D and 4D printing has great potential but we are just not believing in it.

What is 3D printing?

3D printing is one of the 4 ways to create something, subtractive, casting, forming, and additive (3D printing). How it works: the user has access to a 3D modeling application or a 3D scanner, the user creates a virtual design (3D model) of the object they want to print in 3D, the user typically saves their design as a Computer-Aided Design file or CAD for short, the user slices their CAD file before sending it to the printer, the user uploads the sliced CAD file to the 3D printer, and finally, the printer reads each slice in the 2D file to create the three-dimensional object.

Types of 3D printing

Although there are many types of 3D printers, I am going to focus on the main 3. (FDM, SLA, and DLP)

FDM

FDM (fused deposition modeling) printers work like this: a spool of thermoplastic filament is first loaded into the printer. Once the nozzle has reached the desired temperature, the filament is fed to the extrusion head and in the nozzle where it melts. The extrusion head is attached to a 3-axis system that allows it to move in the X, Y, and Z directions. The melted material is extruded in thin strands and is deposited layer-by-layer in predetermined locations, where it cools and solidifies. Sometimes the cooling of the material is accelerated through the use of cooling fans attached to the extrusion head. To fill an area, multiple passes are required (similar to coloring a rectangle with a marker). When a layer is finished, the build platform moves down or the extrusion head moves up and a new layer is deposited. This process is repeated until what you want to create is complete.

SLA

SLA (Stereolithography) printers work like this: using a high-powered laser to harden liquid resin that is contained in a reservoir to create the desired 3D shape. This process basically converts photosensitive liquid into 3D solid plastics in a layer-by-layer fashion using a low-power laser and photopolymerization. SLA 3D printers use light-reactive thermoset materials called “resin”. When SLA resins are exposed to certain wavelengths of light, short molecular chains join together causing it to harden and become solid.

DLP

DLP (digital light processing) printers work like this: They are basically SLA printer except that they do not use UV or ultraviolet as their light source but uses a more common light source, something like an arc lamp. This allows the printing process to be much faster than the usual SLA printer. DLP printers are even faster than FDM printers as they can print entire layers in a matter of seconds then usually taking minutes. Though it is very fast, it is still very expensive and not easy to get your hands on.

Applications of 3D printing

When manufacturers are creating something like a car or parts of a bicycle, they have to get the parts shipped from around the globe. This costs money, takes more time, and shipping is not always available everywhere. But what if we used 3D printing for manufacturing things?

3D printing cars

BMW has started to 3D print part of their cars and found out that indeed it is faster, easier, and less expensive. BMW’s i8 Roadster is

3D printing Spacecrafts

Currently, space travel is very expensive. Building a spacecraft can cost anywhere from $60–$500 million and costs $10, 000 just to put 1 pound into space! But what if we could 3D print parts of a spacecraft? This would significantly reduce the price of space travel and make the goal to move to Mars much easier. Now you are probably thinking that this is far-fetched, I know that because I thought so too until I looked a little deeper. I found that there is a company called Relativity made up of crazy minded and determined engineers that have made this a reality.

Now that you have heard me blabber about 3D printing, let's talk about 4d printing

4D printing

What is 4D printing

4D printing is a new technology in the manufacturing field. 4D printing is basically 3D printing except that you can print programmable material that can change it's form and shape if for example put it is put in water. MIT’s Self-Assembly Lab is currently the leading company in this new technology. They have done many projects with it like a 4D printed chair that self assembles if put in water. Also, they have made a 4D printed string of plastic that spells “MIT” in plastic cursive if put in water.

Applications of 4D printing

4D printing is still new to the world but some people who believe in it have made huge discoveries and implications of this amazing technology.

Smart Piping

Modern-day piping systems are inefficient and not ideal to suit our needs… but what if we had 4D printed piping systems where the pipes could expand and contract in width depending on water demand, or even self repair its self if there was a leakage.

I truly believe that with these technologies, we can change the future.