Materials

Bioinks for Additive Biomanufacturing – Development, Characterisation and Industrial Up-scale

Research Summary

This project focuses on systematic development of biomaterials that can be used for Additive Biomanufacturing (ABM), or ‘bioinks’. Bioinks can be developed into a variety of forms (e.g., hydrogels, polymers, ceramics, and metals) for different biomedical applications. The special requirements of bioinks compared to commodity 3D printing materials are that bioinks need to be compatible with both printing processes and biological processes. Despite their vital importance for ABM, little research has been carried out on the development and upscale of bioinks. This Program will ultimately deliver bioink formulations with controlled biodegradability and bioactivity at an industrial scale.

Subprograms

Hydrogel bioinks

Hydrogels are water-swollen polymer networks that are ideally suited for encapsulating cells. In this subprogram, we will develop materials that are compatible with both cell encapsulation and ABM processes. This project will concentrate on chemically and/or photo-crosslinkabe bioinks as well as tailor and characterise the rheological, mechanical and or biological properties of the bioinks.

Bioceramic containing polymer inks to improve bone regeneration with 3D-printed scaffolds

Bioactive ceramics (bioceramics) have been shown to enhance bone formation. The main research aim of this Subprogram is to develop and characterise the fourth generation of bioceramic scaffolds for regeneration of large bone defects.