Medical Manufacturing and Outsourcing Special Report - November 2021 - 23

TECH BRIEFS
Sonolithography Uses Ultrasound for Non-Contact Patterning on Surfaces
The new printing method coaxes particles and droplets into precise patterns using the
power of sound.
University of Bath, United Kingdom
R
esearchers have developed a way
to coax microscopic particles
and droplets into precise patterns
by harnessing the power of sound
in air. The implications for printing,
especially in the fields of medicine
and electronics, are far-reaching.
The scientists created precise, predetermined
patterns on surfaces from
aerosol droplets or particles using
computer-controlled ultrasound. The
technique, called sonolithography,
patterns dense clouds of material in air
at scale and algorithmically controls
how the material settles into shapes.
The re searchers believe the technique
could revolutionize printing, improving
the speed, cost, and precision of noncontact
patterning techniques in air.
Sonolithography enables gentle,
non-contact, and rapid patterning
of cells and biomaterials on
surfaces. Tissue en gineering can use
biofabrication methods to build defined
structures of cells and materials.
The objects being manipulated
are the size of water drops in clouds.
The ability to move such small things
Ultrasound and computer algorithms control how material settles into shapes.
with such fine control could allow
the direction of aerosol sprays with
extreme precision in applications such
as drug delivery or wound healing.
Beyond biomedicine applications,
the technique is applicable to
a variety of materials. Printed
electronics is another area the team
is developing, with sonolithography
being used to arrange conductive
inks into circuits and components.
For more information, contact
Vittoria D'Alessio at vda26@bath.
ac.uk; +44 (0) 1225 383135.
Turning Pollen into 3D Printing Ink for Biomedical Applications
The ink could be used to make parts for tissue engineering, toxicity testing, and drug delivery.
Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
S
cientists have found a way to use
sunflower pollen to develop a
3D printing ink material that could
be used to fabricate parts useful for
tissue engineering, toxicity testing
and drug delivery. This pollen-derived
ink is able to hold its shape when
deposited onto a surface, making it
a viable alternative to current inks
used for 3D printing in the biomedical
field (also known as bioprinting).
Such inks are usually soft and
delicate, making it a challenge to
retain the final product's desired 3D
shape and structure as the bioprinter
deposits the ink layer by layer.
To illustrate the functionality of
their pollen-based 3D printing ink,
scientists at Nanyang Technological
University in Singapore printed a
biological tissue scaffold that in lab
studies was shown to be suitable for
cell adhesion and growth, which are
essential for tissue regeneration.
MEDICAL MANUFACTURING AND OUTSOURCING SPECIAL REPORT
This novel use for pollen, described
in a scientific paper in Advanced
Functional Materials, highlights its
potential as a sustainable alternative
material to current bioprinting
inks, says the research team.
" Bio printing can be challenging because
the material of the inks used is
typically too soft, which means the
structure of the envisioned product
may collapse during printing, " says the
study's co-lead author, Prof. Cho NamNOVEMBER
2021 23

Medical Manufacturing and Outsourcing Special Report - November 2021

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