3D Printing with Cellulose-based Materials
Skills: Fusion 360, Rhino, Grasshopper, Python, ABB Robot Arm Operation
The table serves as an exploration of how additive manufacturing can be used in furniture production. Curves are featured throughout the table design, emulating those found in nature. The benefits of using additive manufacturing for furniture include customizability, waste minimization, and decentralization of the production process. What sets this table apart from other attempts at using additive manufacturing to produce furniture is that it uses a natural composite material known as fungus-like adhesive material (FLAM). FLAM is made from cellulose and chitin, two of the most abundant natural polymers on earth. This allows the 3D-printed table to be fully biodegradable while having mechanical characteristics comparable to some low-density woods.
The table is part of a project that won the Material and Sustainability award for the 3D Pioneers Challenge in 2023. The project is listed as "FLAM/Biological Table" on the website.
Design
The table was designed on Fusion 360, to be 0.9m tall, 0.96m wide at the widest point and 2m long.
Printing the Pieces
The table was printed in 40 separate segments. The segments were printed from the paths generated in the design process after which they were left to dry for about two weeks.
Printing one section of the table, real-time
One printed section of the table
Assembly of Printed Pieces
The dried segments are then assembled with a layer of FLAM between segments for adhesion and wooden dowels for alignment.
Fully Assembled Sections
The table fully assembled stands about 1.8m tall, and is made up of 40 printed sections. There was a slight twist that formed during the assembly process which had to be rectified.
Correcting the Twist
The dried FLAM can be wet again to become more malleable. The table was wet and a weight of approximately 50kg was placed on the top of the table for three days to get all four legs to touch the ground and make the table top flat.
Table weighed down
Table is flat after weight is removed
Table displayed in the SUTD Library
