Systems and methods for high throughput volumetric three-dimensional (3d) printing

A method of printing one or more three-dimensional objects, the method comprising:

• providing a volume of a photopolymerizable liquid in a container configured to contain a volume of a photopolymerizable liquid, the container including an exit port, the exit port facilitating discharge of photopolymerizable liquid and one or more of any printed three-dimensional objects contained therein from the container, the container including one or more printing zones, wherein a printing zone is configured to facilitate directing at least two excitation light projections into the printing zone to form a three-dimensional printed object within the volume of photopolymerizable liquid in the printing zone, wherein the photopolymerizable liquid comprises a photohardenable component and a photoswitchable photoinitiator, wherein the photoswitchable photoinitiator is activatable by exposure to a first excitation light including a first wavelength and light having a second excitation light including second wavelength to induce a crosslinking or polymerization reaction in the photohardenable component, wherein the first and second wavelengths are different, and wherein the photopolymerizable composition displays non-Newtonian rheological behavior,
• directing the at least two excitation light projections into the printing zone to selectively photopolymerize the photopolymerizable liquid at one or more selected locations in the printing zone, and
• discharging the photopolymerizable liquid and any printed objects contained therein out of the container.

A method of printing one or more three-dimensional objects, the method comprising:

• providing a volume of a photopolymerizable liquid in a container including an entry port and an exit port, the entry port and the exit port being connected by a flow path therebetween, the container including at least one printing zone comprising at least an optically transparent window to facilitate directing at least two excitation light projections into the printing zone through the at least an optically transparent window, wherein the photopolymerizable liquid comprises a photohardenable component and a photoswitchable photoinitiator, wherein the photoswitchable photoinitiator is activatable by exposure to a first excitation light including a first wavelength and light having a second excitation light including second wavelength to induce a crosslinking or polymerization reaction in the photohardenable component, wherein the first and second wavelengths are different, and wherein the photopolymerizable composition displays non-Newtonian rheological behavior,
• directing the at least two excitation light projections through the at least one optically transparent window into the printing zone to selectively photopolymerize the photopolymerizable liquid in the printing zone without support structures to form a printed object, wherein the printed object remains at a fixed position or is minimally displaced in the unpolymerized photopolymerizable liquid during formation, and
• applying pressure to the contents of the container and/or pumping additional photopolymerizable liquid into the container through the entry port to at least transport the printed object out of the printing zone toward the exit port, thereby discharging at least a portion of contents of the container out of the container through the exit port.