4D Printed Smart Valve Which Reacts to Water

[Brian_Krassenstein]

A “smart valve” created by 4D printing hydrogels is both mechanically robust and thermally actuating. It's made of an "interpenetrating network" capable of operating autonomously when it detects the presence of heated water. The Chief Investigator on the project, Professor Marc Panhuis, says his group at the University of Wollongong was the first to combine printing a 4D device with four different cartridges at once. According to Panhuis, the team's main research focus is to combine bio and synthetic polymers with carbon nanostructures, and or conducting polymers via processing techniques such as additive fabrication for use in water treatment, soft robotics, bionics and tissue engineering applications. You can read the whole story here: http://3dprint.com/60395/a-4d-printed-valve

[sitio]

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