title: Cryogenic 3D printing for tissue engineering.
abstract: We describe a new cryogenic 3D printing technology for freezing hydrogels, with a potential impact to tissue engineering. We show that complex frozen hydrogel structures can be generated when the 3D object is printed immersed in a liquid coolant (liquid nitrogen), whose upper surface is maintained at the same level as the highest deposited layer of the object. This novel approach ensures that the process of freezing is controlled precisely, and that already printed frozen layers remain at a constant temperature. We describe the device and present results which illustrate the potential of the new technology.
authors.affiliation: Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA.
authors.forename: Michal
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Adamkiewicz
authors.affiliation: Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA. Electronic address: rubinsky@berkeley.edu.
authors.forename: Boris
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Rubinsky
mesh_terms: D005615:Freezing; D020100:Hydrogels / Q000737:chemistry; D066330:Printing, Three-Dimensional; D023822:Tissue Engineering / Q000379:methods*
chemical_list: D020100:Hydrogels
keywords: Cryogen; Freezing; Hydrogels; Tissue engineering; Tissue scaffolds