Oak Ridge National Laboratory researchers used a 3-D printer to print a table that was manufactured using 10 percent bamboo fiber. (Photo by ORNL)
Researchers at Oak Ridge National Laboratory are using bamboo fiber in 3-D printing experiments, and they’ve printed a table that contains 10 percent bamboo fiber composite.
The goal is to determine whether bio-based feedstock materials from living (or once-living) organisms are feasible in what is known as additive manufacturing.
Officials say 3-D printing is used to manufacture items a layer at a time using such materials as carbon, glass, or bamboo fiber.
Soydan Ozcan
For the 3-D printed table, chopped bamboo fibers were added to a bio-polymer resin to create bamboo-based pellets, resulting in a more sustainable material that can be used for manufacturing molds, prototypes, appliances, and furniture, ORNL said.
“We are investigating the use of different types of cellulose fibers to develop feedstock materials with better mechanical performance that can increase the number of available composites and opportunities for sustainable practices,” ORNL’s Soydan Ozcan said.
More information will be added as it becomes available.
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