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R. Gmeiner, I. Panaitescu, G. Mitteramskogler, J. Wojak, J. Stampfl, A. Boccaccini:
"Lithography-Based Additive Manufacturing of Bioactive Glass Ceramics";
Poster: MSE 2014, Darmstadt; 09-23-2014 - 09-25-2014.

In recent years the fabrication of porous structures and scaffolds made of bioactive glass or bioactive glass ceramics becomes more important. These parts are resources for in-situ cell studies or could serve as bone grafts for medical implants. Lithography-based additive manufacturing processes provide a new and cost efficient alternative to common fabrication methods such as foam replica techniques.
Using layer by layer manufacturing of filled photosensitive monomer slurries, a solid loading of more than 50vol% of bioactive ceramic particles was achieved. Rheometric measurements were conducted to determine the influence of the slurry viscosity on the building process. The bioactive glass formulations used in this study allowed for the fabrication of detailed glass ceramic structures with pore sizes down to 100µm. An overall building resolution of 25x25x25µm³ during green part structuring was possible. The 3D printing of the green part was subsequently followed by thermal debinding and sintering to achieve solid ceramic parts with various levels of porosity. Mechanical properties and fracture behaviour were investigated using biaxial bending tests and SEM.
Ultimately lithography-based AM proves to be a welcome enrichment to common glass ceramic manufacturing strategies and shows great promise for fabrication of porous structures such as scaffolds and bone grafts.

Additive manufacturing; Stereolithography; Bioactive/biocompatible glass; Ceramic filler; Biomaterial; Bone graft; Scaffold fabrication

http://publik.tuwien.ac.at/files/PubDat_232812.pdf