Biodegradation of Post-Cured Photopolymeric Resin of Stereolithography 3D Printers Using Galleria mellonella Larva.
The present research has as main objective to degrade the post-cured photopolymer of the stereolithography 3D printer resin using Galleria mellonella larvae. It is necessary to consider that the use of materials from 3D printers tends to increase considerably and in approximately seven years about 10% of everything that will be produced in the world will come from this type of printing. Considering also that the increase in population growth and technological development are directly linked to the increase of solid waste on the planet, in particular to polymeric materials, there is a need to degrade and give an adequate end to waste, avoiding a notorious accumulation along the time. For this purpose, Galleria mellonella larvae will be used because of it's comprovated capacity to degrade polyethylene, to find out if it is capable of biodegrading the post-cured resin of the printer. To carry out the research, compositional tests were done in partnership with the SENAI Institute for Innovation in Polymer Engineering, located in São Leopoldo, Rio Grande do Sul, and the creation of the larvae and degradation of the photopolymer will be carried out in partnership with the University Federal University of Health Sciences of Porto Alegre (UFCSPA). The data analysis will be based on the crystallinity determination tests by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and attenuated total reflectance spectroscopy (ATR) that will also be applied in the larvae feces after contact with the polymer to assess for degradation. As a result of the compositional tests, the ATR showed predominantly characteristic absorptions of acrylic resin; in the TGA test, the loss of mass described in the test is related to the loss of mass of organic material, mainly polymer. Finally, in the DSC test a thermal event was observed in the heating of the sample, with peaks at 125 ° C (Tpm), characteristic of fusion, and a thermal event in the cooling of the sample, in 112 ° C (Tpc), characteristic of crystallization. Based on the analysis of the results obtained, it is possible to infer that most of the composition of the photopolymer is acrylic resin, widely used in stereolithography 3D printers. The research has the future objective of isolating the substance into the larvae responsible for degradation so that it can be degraded on industrial scales. The research started in March 2020 and is still under development due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which compromised the planned tests.
Detect the Defect
"When the Well is Dry, we will know the Worth of Water." Most of 埃及 and the world suffers from water and petrol shortage. With the current consumption rate, two-thirds of the world's population may face water shortages by 2025. These are water pollution, overpopulation, and agriculture, leading to wastewater from landfills and pipes that seep into the ground and may pollute the water, making it unfit for human consumption and waste more water. Besides, some accidents happen to water distribution and irrigation systems, causing a significant loss in water. According to the ministry of water resources, in 2016, the need for freshwater is 67 billion cubic meters. On the other hand, 埃及 receives only 55 billion cubic meters (2.6 billion cubic meters of them evaporate during runoff). Also, one of the wasting water methods in modern irrigation systems is water leakage from pipes as the water transmission and distribution lose about 31% of the produced water due to pipe leakage. Besides, every day more than 3.3 billion liters of treated water – 20 percent of the nation's supply and 234 million liters a day more than a decade ago – are lost through leaking pipes in England and Wales. Many reasons lead to leakage in pipes like water pressure, clogs, and corrosion. The leakage in pipes does not exist in the lines of water only. Also, the pipes in a petrol can cause dangerous accidents like the accident in the Bahira government that led to the death of 6 people and made 19 in a dangerous state. Our project designed a system that can detect fluid leakage and deal with it fast to prevent the wasting of fluid by using sensors and electronic circuits. Our system provides us with information about the fluid (like the amount of the flowing fluid and its speed). Therefore, if there is a difference in the reads, we understand that there is a leakage in this region, and the system will automatically stop the fluid flowing through the pipes. the system will locate all the leakage sites and send them to the mobile app with the amount wasted and the actions taken.
Ecological inks for markers
Markers have become essential in school and work life due to their great usefulness for teaching and homework. Despite the benefits they have brought, markers are the cause of great contamination from the ink manufacturing process to the excessive production of plastic. Ecological inks in markers and the innovative design of a refillable marker, allow to generate less pollution without having to stop using this product. From dyes created with coffee, fruits and vegetables that pass through different processes, natural inks arise that replace the use of polluting dyes. Likewise, implementing recycling plans in different institutions, markers that were no longer used were collected to be filled with ecological inks and used again. In addition, the excessive production of plastic is reduced by selling and refilling markers and ink kits.
THE DESIGN OF MICROFLUIDIC PUMP (MFP) FOR MEDICAL FIELD
The ability of microfluidic (MF) device technologies to provide a lot of information with a small amount of sample, the opportunities it offers increases their use in the medical field in the bedside monitoring in drug delivery systems. Three-dimensional (3D) printer technologies provide advantages such as cost-effectiveness in the production of MF devices and quick and easy production in intricate designs. In our project, it is aimed to design microfluidic pumps (MFP) to be used in the medical field and conduct its production with 3D printer technologies. The developed MFP is intended to be at low cost, bio-compatible, adaptable, and portable to the drug, suitable flow properties as a pharmaceutical pump. First of all, MFP air channel, flow channel, etc. parts were designed and printed with the help of a 3D printer and on AutoCAD, one of the professional drawing programs. The poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) membrane that will enable MFP activation is produced in different thicknesses and glued to the air channel of MFP. The resistance to the applied pressure is observed, and the appropriate membrane thickness is determined as ~ 235µm. Liquid PDMS was applied to the inner surfaces of MFP's air and flow channel, PDMS membrane was placed between them, and the parts were assembled in the oven at 60ºC. MFP has been connected to the pneumatic valve system, where operation codes have been prepared with Arduino Uno, and flow properties have been examined. The flow rate of MFP is ~ 50 µL/min at a maximum of 15 Hz, and the backpressure is ~ 0.085 Pa under a maximum pressure of 3 bar. Also, values such as size, membrane thickness, and applied pressure for the possible models of MFP were supported by theoretical calculations. As a result, MFP, which is biocompatible, drug adaptable, portable, wearable technology application potential, and has suitable flow characteristics as a pharmaceutical pump, has been developed. MFP introduced a microfluidic pump system that can make life easier for the patient and contribute to the national economy through domestic production and can be used as a drug pump in the treatment of diseases such as diabetes and cancer.