Advances in 4D Printing: Material, Processes, Applications
A special issue of Materials (ISSN 1996-1944). This special issue belongs to the section "Manufacturing Processes and Systems".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 September 2024 | Viewed by 166
Special Issue Editors
Interests: polymers; processes; additive manufacturing; fused filament fabrication; characterization; crystallisation; multi-scale-structures; mechanical properties; electro-active polymers; biomedical implants
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
A few years ago, additive manufacturing (AM) processes were primarily seen as efficient tools for rapid prototyping. Today, owing to the remarkable advancements made in both materials and AM machines (i.e., 3D printers), these processes are extensively utilized for industrially producing functional parts with complex geometries. While AM has made significant progress, it is not yet fully mature, and the increasing array of available materials is currently expanding its applicability, as seen in the case of 4D printing.
In 4D printing, structures created through 3D printing can undergo geometric deformations over time, controlled by external stimuli such as changes in temperature, humidity, electrical fields, etc. This capability finds applications in various fields, including biomedicine, where patient-specific implants with controlled drug release, robotics for the development of soft robots, and textiles in which clothes can detect abnormal body temperature increases and notify the wearer through local deformations, among others, can be fabricated.
This Special Issue aims to highlight the latest advances in the 4D printing of polymers and composites. The articles featured will focus into the development of innovative materials (polymer synthesis, polymer and composite formulation, etc.), the fabrication of complex structures (auxetic, multi-material parts, assembly, etc.), and the diverse applications of 4D-printed objects (biomedicine, aeronautics, civil engineering, electronics, etc).
Dr. Sébastien Charlon
Dr. Alexandre Khaldi
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Materials is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- 4D printing
- additive manufacturing
- polymers and composites
- structure
- stimuli
- temporal deformations
- electronics
- biomedical devices
