Abstract
Abstract
The biocompatibility of photopolymers in additive manufacturing (AM) often referred to as 3D printing (3DP) is an issue of concern due to, among other things, the unique parameters of the manufacturing process, which can influence the physical, chemical, and biological properties of AM-produced devices. The quality of AM-produced devices may consequently vary when identical parts are built using different 3D printers or even when the same 3D printer, parameters, process steps, and materials are used. In this novel study, representative materials built with stereolithography and material jetting processes were subjected to biological evaluation using the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) fish embryo test designed to determine acute toxicity of chemicals on embryonic stages of fish. The study demonstrates that the AM materials are toxic in zebrafish assays; however, the adverse effects of toxicity in some materials were reduced significantly after treatment with ethanol. Within the limitations of the study, it is evident that material composition and cleaning method are significant parameters by which the biological risks of photopolymers in 3DP can be assessed. Furthermore, the zebrafish biocompatibility assay is a reliable assessment tool for quantifying the toxicity of leachates in AM materials.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
Supplementary Material
Please find the following supplemental material available below.
For Open Access articles published under a Creative Commons License, all supplemental material carries the same license as the article it is associated with.
For non-Open Access articles published, all supplemental material carries a non-exclusive license, and permission requests for re-use of supplemental material or any part of supplemental material shall be sent directly to the copyright owner as specified in the copyright notice associated with the article.
