Review on 3D Printing of Bioinspired Structures for Surface/Interface Applications

Abstract

Natural organisms have evolved a series of versatile functional biomaterials and structures to cope with survival crises in their living environment, exhibiting outstanding properties such as superhydrophobicity, anisotropy, and mechanical reinforcement, which have provided abundant inspiration for the design and fabrication of next‐generation multi‐functional devices. However, the lack of available materials and limitations of traditional manufacturing methods for complex multiscale structures have hindered the progress in bio‐inspired manufacturing of functional structures. As a revolutionary emerging manufacturing technology, additive manufacturing (i.e., 3D printing) offers high design flexibility and manufacturing freedom, providing the potential for the fabrication of intricate, multiscale, hierarchical, and multi‐material structures. Herein, a comprehensive review of current 3D printing of surface/interface structures, covering the applied materials, designs, and functional applications is provided. Several bio‐inspired surface structures that have been created using 3D printing technology are highlighted and categorized based on their specific properties and applications, some properties can be applied to multiple applications. The optimized designs of these 3D‐printed bio‐inspired surfaces offer a promising prospect of low‐cost, high efficiency, and excellent performance. Finally, challenges and opportunities in field of fabricating functional surface/interface with more versatile functional material, refined structural design, and better cost‐effective are discussed.

Let’s Print an Ecology in 3D (and 4D)

“…By reducing reliance on fossil fuels and non-renewable resources, as well as due to their biodegradability or recyclability, these materials contribute to ecological sustainability by minimizing environmental impact and promoting circular economy principles. Tailoring the properties of 3D printing materials to specific applications (functional properties) can lead to more efficient and sustainable solutions, e.g., lightweight and high-strength materials can reduce material usage and energy consumption in transportation and aerospace applications, conductive and sensor-integrated materials enable smart and energy-efficient systems for environmental monitoring and control, and bioinspired lightweight composites can mimic the structure and properties of natural water filtration membranes [114][115][116][117]. The primary focus lies in the development of biomaterials suitable for 3D printing, e.g., biocompatible poly(ethylene glycol)diacrylate/nano-hydroxyapatite composites for continuous liquid interface production [118]; colloidal biomaterials using photo-reactive gelatin nanoparticles, showcasing the control over architecture and properties of biomaterial constructs [119]; capillary alginate gel for 3D-printing biomaterial inks to facilitate the integration, infiltration, and vascularization of 3D-printed structures [120]; poly(octamethylene maleate (anhydride) citrate) and poly(ethylene glycol) diacrylate copolymers for biomedical applications, and the potential application of tunable biomaterials in personalized medicine [121]; or even post-decellularized printing of cartilage extracellular matrixes [122].…”

Foaming photothermal inks for direct-ink writing: hierarchical design and enhanced solar-powered interfacial evaporation

“…3D printing facilitates the expeditious, adaptable and facile production of intricately detailed 3D geometries surpassing those achievable through conventional methods such as subtractive and formative manufacturing. 60,61 It has also demonstrated remarkable versatility by accommodating an increasingly diverse range of materials, notably encompassing emerging photothermal composites. 62–68 This method is gaining recognition as an effective approach for accelerating the prototyping process and for creating biomimetic 3D interfacial SGs with precisely controlled hierarchical structures.…”