UPcycling using Additive Manufacturing (UpAM) project seeks to introduce an innovative educational and interactive framework to demonstrate the benefits of upcycling
'3D printing and especially FDM technology has been democratised and is now accessible to a large number of people,' states Senior Lecturer Claude Wolf. This is exactly why the otherwise distinct border between design and manufacturing is slowly vanishing, because 3D printers and more general desktop manufacturing have propelled the development and generation of virtually every kind of manufacturing without any geometry restrictions.
'The industrial revolution dictates that we need to introduce new methods when educating engineers with a focus on teaching them to be innovative. The UpAM project is a very successful and accurate example of developing such an educational framework,' says Associate Professor Slawomir Kedziora.
Therefore, it comes as no surprise that the concept of the UpAM system is based on these principles and, more specifically, on reusing unwanted or non-functional polymers issued from existing products and systems. In fact, and as stated by Wolf and Kedziora, this process proposes the closure the product life loop, from waste materials through the generation of a filament wire and then manufacturing of the new final products using the technology of FDM additive manufacturing.
'The developed UpAM system will raise public awareness regarding the different methods and processes to develop the activity of upcycling. 3D FDM printers are an excellent tool to illustrate the concept of Circular Economy through recycling and upcycling of polymers,' says Keziora.
Keywords: 3D PRINTING; ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING TECHNOLOGY; CIRCULAR ECONOMY; DESKTOP MANUFACTURING; EDUCATIONAL FRAMEWORK; FILAMENT WIRE; FUSED DEPOSITION MODELLING (FDM) TECHNOLOGY; PRODUCT LIFE LOOP; RECYCLING; REUSING UNWANTED OR NON-FUNCTIONAL POLYMERS; SCHOOL PROJECTS; UPAM SYSTEM; UPCYCLING; WASTE MATERIALS
Document Type: Research Article
Publication date: 01 December 2018
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