3D printing will be one of the key technologies in the next industrial revolution. It will usher us into an era of decentralized manufacturing, empowering individuals to manufacture in their communities. One area in particular that can benefit from 3D printing is the production of electronics. 3D printing allows for the fabrication of structural electronics, which have their components embedded in the 3D structured object. Recently spotlighted 3D structural printing technologies include fused filament fabrication and direct-ink writing to prepare 3D conductive traces. Highly conductive traces are imperative for achieving reliable 3D structural electronics. This Spotlight will overview highly conductive 3D printable materials available from several prominent methods of producing conductive traces. Key conducting materials demonstrated by 3D deposition, photocuring, and electrochemical approaches have been reviewed and discussed.
Today, respiratory ventilators are in high demand at the peak of the COVID-19 outbreak. However, there are concerns regarding insufficient supply of ventilators to handle the impending surge due to the high cost, and slow production and deliveries. Thus, the development of a low-cost portable ventilator becomes essential. The mechanical ventilator requires two main components including an active airbag and its venting control system. We developed a reliable active airbag designed with mechanically tunable 3D origami structures. The 3D origami structure based active airbag demonstrates reliable and reconfigurable characteristics. The active airbag’s volume can be tuned by controlling the triangular angles in the 3D origami-folding plates. Moreover, its volumetric ratio before and after compression is around 85%. Also, the rotating behavior of 3D origami tube under the compressive force allows more functionalities in the airbag such as the architectured pressure sensing. The 3D printed origami sensor measures the compressed angle to confirm the accuracy of detected pressure in the ventilator circuit. We achieved accurate delivery of targeted air volume with specific airflow rate by 3D printed reconfigurable origami tubes.
Visible light is used to generate heat from gold nanoparticles wrapped in an amphiphilic polymer shell and trigger a reverse Diels-Alder reaction of a ‘caged’ tyrophostin therapeutic agent. The hydrophillic...
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