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Advancements in recyclable 3D-printing polymers

Overview

Researchers at the University of Heidelberg have developed a new polymer-based material designed to facilitate a closed-loop recycling process for light-based 3D printing. Led by Professor Eva Blasco at the Institute for Molecular Systems Engineering and Advanced Materials (IMSEAM), the team created a metastable material that maintains high precision, quality, and mechanical stability during use.

Unlike traditional thermoset polymers used in high-precision additive manufacturing—which are highly stable but difficult to recycle—this new material contains a specific chemical ‘key’ or trigger. When this trigger is applied, the molecular chains break down into their original building blocks within seconds. This allows the material to be recovered and reused in a circular manufacturing process, potentially reducing waste in fields such as soft robotics and personalized medicine.

Entities

Chalmers University of Technology · University of Heidelberg · Institute for Molecular Systems Engineering and Advanced Materials · Eva Blasco

Timeline

  1. 23 days ago

    [TECHNOLOGY] 2 sources
    University of Heidelberg researchers develop recyclable 3D-printing polymer

    University of Heidelberg researchers have developed a recyclable metastable polymer for light-based 3D printing that can be broken down into molecular building blocks using a chemical trigger.

  2. 23 days ago

    [TECHNOLOGY] 2 sources
    Chalmers University researchers develop 3D-printable yeast-based biomaterial

    Swedish researchers have developed a 3D-printable, bio-based construction material made from baker's yeast, wood fibers, and algae to replace fossil-based substances.

Sources

chemie.de · energieleben.at · industry-of-things.de · wufi.de