Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Material-Efficient Multimaterial Projection Micro-stereolithography Using Droplet-Based Resin Supply

  • Regular Paper
  • Published:
International Journal of Precision Engineering and Manufacturing-Green Technology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

This paper presents a material-efficient multimaterial projection micro-stereolithography (PμSL), a digital light processing (DLP) additive manufacturing process for printing microstructures. We present a droplet-based resin supply system to address the issue of excessive material waste of the multimaterial PμSL. By depositing droplets of different liquid resins, 3D printing of a microstructure can still be performed without the need for a traditional vat while printing materials can be switched with minimal material consumption. Precise control of small droplet volume is obtained by pressure control of the resin injection nozzles, exact opening times of fluid valves, and appropriate surface coatings in order to portion droplets so that just enough material is brought to the build area. Since PμSL enables micro 3D printing (in-plane resolution of 76 μm), PμSL using droplet-based resin supply module provides multimaterial micro 3D printing with low material consumption. Also reported is that material bleeding, which degrades the printing resolution during multimaterial printing, can be minimized by using a cleaning droplet system. We present 3D printing of highly complex multimaterial 3D microstructures using three different photocurable polymers, demonstrating a material efficiency of 11.4%, which is 500 times higher than that of a previously reported PμSL process using dynamic fluidic control.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6
Fig. 7

Similar content being viewed by others

Data availability

The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding authors upon reasonable request.

References

  1. Gibson, I., Rosen, D. W., Stucker, B., Khorasani, M., Rosen, D., Stucker, B., & Khorasani, M. (2021). Additive manufacturing technologies. Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-56127-7

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. Kim, S., Kim, D. H., Kim, W., Cho, Y. T., & Fang, N. X. (2021). Additive manufacturing of functional microarchitected reactors for energy, environmental, and biological applications. International Journal of Precision Engineering and Manufacturing-Green Technology, 8, 303–326. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40684-020-00277-5

    Article  Google Scholar 

  3. Auyeskhan, U., Kim, N., Kim, C. S., Van Loi, T., Choi, J., & Kim, D. H. (2021). Design approach for additive manufacturing of a dynamically functioning system: Lifeboat hook. International Journal of Precision Engineering and Manufacturing-Green Technology, 9, 1349–1367. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40684-021-00399-4

    Article  Google Scholar 

  4. Han, D., & Lee, H. (2020). Recent advances in multi-material additive manufacturing: Methods and applications. Current Opinion in Chemical Engineering, 28, 158–166. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.coche.2020.03.004

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. Lalegani Dezaki, M., & Bodaghi, M. (2023). A review of recent manufacturing technologies for sustainable soft actuators. International Journal of Precision Engineering and Manufacturing-Green Technology, 10, 1661–1710. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40684-023-00533-4

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. Overvelde, J. T. (2019). How to print multi-material devices in one go. Nature, 575, 289–290. https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-019-03408-4

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. Skylar-Scott, M. A., Mueller, J., Visser, C. W., & Lewis, J. A. (2019). Voxelated soft matter via multimaterial multinozzle 3D printing. Nature, 575, 330–335. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-019-1736-8

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Hao, L., Tang, D., Sun, T., Xiong, W., Feng, Z., Evans, K. E., & Li, Y. (2021). Direct ink writing of mineral materials: A review. International Journal of Precision Engineering and Manufacturing-Green Technology, 8, 665–685. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40684-020-00222-6

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Fekiri, C., Kim, C., Kim, H. C., Cho, J. H., & Lee, I. H. (2022). Multi-material additive fabrication of a carbon nanotube-based flexible tactile sensor. International Journal of Precision Engineering and Manufacturing, 23, 453–458. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12541-022-00632-3

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. Rafiee, M., Farahani, R. D., & Therriault, D. (2020). Multi-material 3D and 4D printing: A survey. Advanced Science, 7, 1902307. https://doi.org/10.1002/advs.201902307

    Article  Google Scholar 

  11. Patpatiya, P., Chaudhary, K., Shastri, A., & Sharma, S. (2022). A review on polyjet 3D printing of polymers and multi-material structures. Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, Part C: Journal of Mechanical Engineering Science, 236, 7899–7926. https://doi.org/10.1177/09544062221079506

    Article  Google Scholar 

  12. Gwon, M., Park, G., Hong, D., Park, Y. J., Han, S., Kang, D., & Koh, J. S. (2022). Soft directional adhesion gripper fabricated by 3D printing process for gripping flexible printed circuit boards. International Journal of Precision Engineering and Manufacturing-Green Technology, 9, 1151–1163. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40684-021-00368-x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  13. Sun, C., Fang, N., Wu, D., & Zhang, X. (2005). Projection micro-stereolithography using digital micro-mirror dynamic mask. Sensors and Actuators A: Physical, 121, 113–120. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sna.2004.12.011

    Article  Google Scholar 

  14. Ge, Q., Li, Z., Wang, Z., Kowsari, K., Zhang, W., He, X., Zhou, J., & Fang, N. X. (2020). Projection micro stereolithography based 3D printing and its applications. International Journal of Extreme Manufacturing, 2, 022004. https://doi.org/10.1088/2631-7990/ab8d9a

    Article  Google Scholar 

  15. Han, D., Lu, Z., Chester, S. A., & Lee, H. (2018). Micro 3D printing of a temperature-responsive hydrogel using projection micro-stereolithography. Scientific Reports, 8, 1963. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-018-20385-2

    Article  Google Scholar 

  16. Choi, J.-W., Kim, H.-C., & Wicker, R. (2011). Multi-material stereolithography. Journal of Materials Processing Technology, 211, 318–328. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmatprotec.2010.10.003

    Article  Google Scholar 

  17. Zhou, C., Chen, Y., Yang, Z., & Khoshnevis, B. (2013). Digital material fabrication using mask-image-projection-based stereolithography. Rapid Prototyping Journal, 19, 153–165. https://doi.org/10.1108/13552541311312148

    Article  Google Scholar 

  18. Mu, Q., Wang, L., Dunn, C. K., Kuang, X., Duan, F., Zhang, Z., Qi, H. J., & Wang, T. (2017). Digital light processing 3D printing of conductive complex structures. Additive Manufacturing, 18, 74–83. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.addma.2017.08.011

    Article  Google Scholar 

  19. Han, D., Yang, C., Fang, N. X., & Lee, H. (2019). Rapid multi-material 3D printing with projection micro-stereolithography using dynamic fluidic control. Additive Manufacturing, 27, 606–615. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.addma.2019.03.031

    Article  Google Scholar 

  20. Bong, K. W., Chapin, S. C., Pregibon, D. C., Baah, D., Floyd-Smith, T. M., & Doyle, P. S. (2011). Compressed-air flow control system. Lab on a Chip, 11, 743–747. https://doi.org/10.1039/C0LC00303D

    Article  Google Scholar 

  21. White, F. M. (2015). Fluid mechanics (8th ed.). McGraw Hill.

    Google Scholar 

  22. Wang, Q., Jackson, J. A., Ge, Q., Hopkins, J. B., Spadaccini, C. M., & Fang, N. X. (2016). Lightweight mechanical metamaterials with tunable negative thermal expansion. Physical Review Letters, 117, 175901. https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.117.175901

    Article  Google Scholar 

  23. Zheng, X., Deotte, J., Alonso, M. P., Farquar, G. R., Weisgraber, T. H., Gemberling, S., Lee, H., Fang, N., & Spadaccini, C. M. (2012). Design and optimization of a light-emitting diode projection micro-stereolithography three-dimensional manufacturing system. Review of Scientific Instruments, 83, 125001. https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4769050

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) grant funded by the Korea government (MSIT) (No. 1711154190, RS-2023-00218543, RS-2023-00221987, RS-2022-00166341). This work was also supported by SNU Creative-Pioneering Researchers Program. The authors also gratefully acknowledge the support from Rutgers University.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Rutgers University-New Brunswick, New Brunswick, NJ, USA

    Jay Tobia, Chen Yang & Jason Kim

  2. School of Chemical Engineering, Chonnam National University, Gwangju, Republic of Korea

    Daehoon Han

  3. Department of Mechanical Engineering, Institute of Advanced Machines and Design, Seoul National University, Seoul, Republic of Korea

    Howon Lee

Authors
  1. Jay Tobia
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Chen Yang
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Jason Kim
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Daehoon Han
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Howon Lee
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Daehoon Han or Howon Lee.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of interest

The authors declare no competing financial interests.

Additional information

Publisher's Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Tobia, J., Yang, C., Kim, J. et al. Material-Efficient Multimaterial Projection Micro-stereolithography Using Droplet-Based Resin Supply. Int. J. of Precis. Eng. and Manuf.-Green Tech. (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40684-023-00585-6

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40684-023-00585-6

Keywords

Search

Navigation