New 3D printing technology uses soundwaves
Abstract
In the mind-blowing science department, a new 3D printing technology will use soundwaves to produce new objects. Scientists at Concordia University in Montreal describe what they're calling direct sound printing in a paper published in April in Nature Communications. The usual 3D printing techniques rely on light or heat to precisely manipulate polymers. DSP focuses ultrasound waves to create reactions in tiny bubbles in a liquid polymer solution. Habibi is a research associate at Concordia's Optical-Bio Microsystems Lab and lead author of the new paper explaining DSP. "Basically, the bubbles can be used as reactors to drive chemical reactions to transform liquid resin into solids or semi-solids." In the future, DSP could benefit industries that rely on delicate, highly specific equipment, such as medical devices. Photos of early efforts to print with DSP accompany the published paper. Fittingly, objects printed include the letters DSP and a Canadian maple leaf.
