Living clothes: Soon, you may see apparels made of algae!
By using 3D printers and novel bioprinting technique, researchers have printed âlivingâ materials which are tough, resilient and 100 per cent eco-friendly
Amsterdam (Netherlands): For the first time, an international team of researchers from the University of Rochester and Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands used 3D printers and a novel bioprinting technique to print algae into living, photosynthetic materials that are tough and resilient.
Living materials, which are made by housing biological cells within a non-living matrix, have gained popularity in recent years as scientists recognize that often the most robust materials are those that mimic nature. The research is published in the journal Advanced Functional Materials.
This photosynthetic material could be made into living clothes 04 May 2021
Professional Engineering
A small sample of the bioprinted photosynthetic material, which could one day be used to make artificial leaves or living clothes (Credit: University of Rochester photo) A new living, photosynthetic material could be used for clothes, energy harvesting or medical applications, its developers have said.
An international team of researchers from the University of Rochester in New York State and Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands used 3D printers and a novel bioprinting technique to print algae into the ‘tough and resilient’ material.
“3D printing is a powerful technology for fabrication of living functional materials that have a huge potential in a wide range of environmental and human-based applications, said Srikkanth Balasubramanian, a postdoctoral research associate at Delft and the first author of the paper. “We provide the firs
Researchers use 3D printers and a novel bioprinting technique to print algae into living, photosynthetic materials for use in fashion, medicine, and more.
Bioprinted algae could make artificial leaves Written by: Andrew Wade | Published: 04 May 2021 (Credit: University of Rochester)
Advanced Functional Materials, the research combined bacterial cellulose with living microalgae, the former acting as the structural support for the latter during the bioprinting process. The technique resulted in a unique, eco-friendly material with the photosynthetic quality of the algae and the robustness of the bacterial cellulose. According to researchers behind the study, the material is tough and resilient but also biodegradable and scalable to produce. Three-dimensional printing is a powerful technology for fabrication of living functional materials that have a huge potential in a wide range of environmental and human-based applications,â said first author Srikkanth Balasubramanian, a postdoctoral research associate at Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands.
Clothes In The Future Could Be Made Of Algae
Advertisement
I did not think that I would be writing about Algae and clothes at the same time but apparently, a research team in the Netherlands has developed a bioprinting technique that prints algae into living, photosynthetic materials that are both tough and resilient. This material can be woven into clothes. The group published their research in the journal Advanced Functional Materials. It surely is a new way to make clothes and may reduce the use of synthetic fibers.
The research has been done by a team of scientists at the University of Rochester and Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands. The team employed 3D prints and algae to create a new living material. The material could also be used in applications concerning energy and medicine.