Additive Manufacturing of Channels
AssigneeNew Jersey Institute of Technology
InventorsMurat Guvendiren, Shen Ji
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Abstract
A method is disclosed for 3D printing of soft polymeric material such as a hydrogel or elastomer for scaffolds or devices with embedded channels with tunable shape and size such as a channel inner diameter). The method utilizes extrusion based printing of polymer solutions usually referred as direct ink writing (DIW) or BioPlotting, and requires sequential printing of a photocurable polymer solution, herein, referred as the matrix material, and a sacrificial polymer solution that may dissolve in an aqueous media.
Claims20
A method for making a 3D scaffold or a device, comprises:
- printing a photocurable polymer matrix material layer and a sacrificial polymer material layer;
- and
- wherein the sacrificial polymer material layer is printed directly within the freshly printed photocurable matrix material layer.
A method for making a 3D scaffold, comprises:
- directly and sequentially printing a photocurable matrix material and a photocurable sacrificial material in a single step by a dual extrusion based printing;
- fabricating a vascularized scaffold;
- and
- wherein the photocurable matrix material and sacrificial material is not a shear thinning material, and the sequential printing of the sacrificial material is within an interface of the matrix material.
A method for making a 3D scaffold, comprises:
- dual printing print a matrix material up to a specific thickness for forming a printed layer;
- exposing the matrix material to a light source after each of the printed layer, and partially crosslinking the printed layer to allow self-supporting of the matrix material;
- printing a sacrificial layer with a sacrificial material directly within an interface layer of the printed matrix material;
- exposing the sacrificial layer to the light source after printing of the sacrificial material;
- printing a new layer of matrix material;
- repeating above first through fifth steps to create a scaffold in a desired thickness or a human scale;
- exposing the scaffold to the light source to fully crosslink the scaffold after printing and the desired thickness or the human scale is achieved;
- and
- immersing the scaffold into an aqueous solution to remove the sacrificial material for a formation of channels.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.