3D Printing Strategy Research Articles

Manipulation of Impedance Matching toward 3D-Printed Lightweight and Stiff MXene-Based Aerogels for Consecutive Multiband Tunable Electromagnetic Wave Absorption

Highly conductive MXene material exhibits outstanding dissipation capability of electromagnetic (EM) waves. However, the interfacial impedance mismatch due to high reflectivity restricts the application of MXene-based EM wave absorbing materials. Herein, a direct ink writing (DIW) 3D printing strategy to construct lightweight and stiff MXene/graphene oxide aerogels (SMGAs) with controllable fret architecture is demonstrated, exhibiting tunable EM wave absorption properties by manipulating impedance matching. Noteworthy, the maximum reflection loss variation value (ΔRL) of SMGAs is -61.2 dB by accurately modulating the width of the fret architecture. The effective absorption region (fE) of SMGAs exhibits consecutive multiband tunability, and the broadest tunable fE (Δf) is 14.05 GHz, which could be continuously tuned in the whole C- (4-8 GHz), X- (8-12 GHz), and Ku-bands (12-18 GHz). Importantly, the hierarchical structures and the orderly stacking of filaments endow lightweight SMGAs (0.024 g cm-3) with a surprising compression resistance, which can withstand 36 000 times its own weight without obvious deformation. Finite element analysis (FEA) further indicates that the hierarchical structure facilitates stress dispersion. The strategy developed here provides a method for fabricating tunable MXene-based EM wave absorbers that are lightweight and stiff.

Expanding Embedded 3D Bioprinting Capability for Engineering Complex Organs with Freeform Vascular Networks.

Creating functional tissues and organs in vitro on demand is a major goal in biofabrication, but the ability to replicate the external geometry of specific organs and their internal structures such as blood vessels simultaneously remains one of the greatest impediments. Here, this limitation is addressed by developing a generalizable bioprinting strategy of sequential printing in a reversible ink template (SPIRIT). It is demonstrated that this microgel-based biphasic (MB) bioink can be used as both an excellent bioink and a suspension medium that supports embedded 3D printing due to its shear-thinning and self-healing behavior. When encapsulating human-induced pluripotent stem cells, the MB bioink is 3D printed to generate cardiac tissues and organoids by extensive stem cell proliferation and cardiac differentiation. By incorporating MB bioink, the SPIRIT strategy enables the effective printing of a ventricle model with a perfusable vascular network, which is not possible to fabricate using extant 3D printing strategies. This SPIRIT technique offers an unparalleled bioprinting capability to replicate the complex organ geometry and internal structure in a faster manner, which will accelerate the biofabrication and therapeutic applications of tissue and organ constructs.

THERMOSENSITIVE HYDROGEL LOADED WITH ENGINEERED ADIPOSE STEM CELLS FOR THE TREATMENT OF DEGENERATIVE INTERVERTEBRAL DISC

Intervertebral disc degeneration can lead to physical disability and significant pain, while the present therapeutics still fail to biochemically and biomechanically restore the tissue. Stem cell-based therapy in treating intervertebral disc (IVD) degeneration is promising while transplanting cells alone might not be adequate for effective regeneration. Recently, gene modification and 3D-printing strategies represent promising strategies to enhanced therapeutic efficacy of MSC therapy. In this regard, we hypothesized that the combination of thermosensitive chitosan hydrogel and adipose derived stem cells (ADSCs) engineered with modRNA encoding Interleukin − 4 (IL-4) can inhibit inflammation and promote the regeneration of the degenerative IVD.Rat ADSCs were acquired from adipose tissue and transfected with modRNAs. First, the kinetics and efficacy of modRNA-mediated gene transfer in mouse ADSCs were analyzed in vitro. Next, we applied an indirect co-culture system to analyze the pro-anabolic potential of IL-4 modRNA engineered ADSCs (named as IL-4-ADSCs) on nucleus pulposus cells.ModRNA transfected mouse ADSCs with high efficiency and the IL-4 modRNA-transfected ADSCs facilitated burst-like production of bio-functional IL-4 protein. In vitro, IL-4-ADSCs induced increased anabolic markers expression of nucleus pulposus cells in inflammation environment compared to untreated ADSCs.These findings collectively supported the therapeutic potential of the combination of thermosensitive chitosan hydrogel and IL-4-ADSCs for intervertebral disc degeneration management. Histological and in vivo validation are now being conducted.

Abrasion-resistant superhydrophilic objects with anisotropic water transport capacities prepared by a selective laser sintering 3D printing strategy

Liquid directional manipulation has been widely used in the fields of microfluidic, microreactor, liquid separation and collection, sewage treatment. Most studies based on the construction of gradient structures on the substrate surface realized liquid directional transportation, but their fragile surfaces are vulnerable to external forces and can only transport thin water film according to the array thickness. Here, we report that abrasion-resistant superhydrophilic objects with anisotropic water transport capacities can be one-step constructed by selective laser sintering (SLS) the composites of hydrophilic glass beads (GBs) and thermoplastic phenol–formaldehyde resin (PF) grains. The long interlayer micro-slits between the adjacent printing layers cooperated with the inserted hydrophilic GBs formed long capillary channels, resulting in anisotropic water transport abilities on different printing surfaces. In addition, the abrasion-resistant ability endowed superhydrophilic mechanical stability. Furthermore, water could climb about ∼26 cm along the horizontal printed sample, showing excellent anti-gravity water transport ability. Finally, we demonstrated that the printed evaporators with diverse salt-resistant structures not only maintain long-term salt resistance, but also possess high evaporation efficiency. The superhydrophilic materials proposed in this study will lead the design and preparation of liquid directional transport materials and provide advanced inspiration for 3D printing functional materials.

Biological response of 3D-printed β-tricalcium phosphate bioceramic scaffolds with the hollow tube structure

It is a large clinical challenge to repair critical-size bone defects, and vascularization in the early stage is of vital importance in bone regeneration. In recent years, 3D-printed bioceramic is a kind of common bioactive scaffold for repairing bone defects. However, conventional 3D-printed bioceramic scaffolds consist of stacked solid struts with low porosity, which limits the ability of angiogenesis and bone regeneration. The hollow tube structure can induce endothelial cells to build the vascular system. In this study, β-tricalcium phosphate (β-TCP) bioceramic scaffolds containing the hollow tube structure were prepared with digital light processing-based 3D printing strategy. The physicochemical properties and osteogenic activities of prepared scaffolds could be precisely controlled by adjusting the parameters of hollow tubes. Compared with solid bioceramic scaffolds, such scaffolds could significantly improve the proliferation and attachment activity of rabbit bone mesenchymal stem cells in vitro, and facilitate early angiogenesis and subsequent osteogenesis in vivo. Therefore, β-TCP bioceramic scaffolds with the hollow tube structure possess great potential application for the treatment of critical-size bone defects.

Additive manufacturing of continuously reinforced thermally curable thermoset composites with rapid interlayer curing

Research on different methods to achieve composite additive manufacturing has accelerated in the last decade. Existing commercial equipment on the market can only fabricate carbon fiber composites using thermoplastic or a narrow range of rapid curable resins (photopolymerization and frontal polymerization), which cannot meet a wide range of mechanical and durability requirements. Here, we developed a Rapid Interlayer Curing Assisted (RICA) 3D printing strategy, by in-situ formation of a dual-cure resin system to enable an interpenetrating network (IPN) at the interlayer in between thermally curable resin/fiber laminates to achieve fast solidification and shape retention in 3D printing, and then subsequently forming a complete polymerization of major matrix resin (e.g., epoxy) across the interlaminar in post-baking. This concept allows to use any types of commercially available thermally curable resin and fibers to develop 3D printed composites. We developed a robotic system consisting of a uniquely designed end effector and an automated robot arm, yielding a composite 3D printer that enables us to print continuously reinforced thermally curable thermoset composites. The printed composite achieved fiber volume fraction at ∼44.2 vol%, tensile strength at 1075.27 MPa and modulus at 45.24 GPa, flexural strength at 1209.50 MPa and modulus at 68.01 GPa, and interlaminar strength at 37.17 MPa.

Ink Based on the Tunable Swollen Microsphere for a 3D Printing Hydrogel with Broad-Range Mechanical Properties.

The development of the effective 3D printing strategy for diverse functional monomers is still challenging. Moreover, the conventional 3D printing hydrogels are usually soft and fragile due to the lack of an energy dissipation mechanism. Herein, a microsphere mediating ink preparation strategy is developed to provide tailored rheological behavior for various monomer direct ink writings. The chitosan microspheres are used as an exemplary material due to their tunable swelling ratio under the acid-drived electrostatic repulsion of the protonated amino groups. The rheological behaviors of the swollen chitosan microsphere (SCM) are independent on the monomer types, and various functional secondary polymers could be carried at a wide loading ratio by the acid driving. The SCM reinforces the hydrogel as the sacrificial bonds. With the adjustable composition, the 3D printing hydrogel mechanical properties are tunable in wide windows: strength (0.4-1.01 MPa), dissipated energy (0.11-3.25 MJ m-3), and elongation at break (47-626%). With the excellent printing and mechanical properties, the SCM inks enable multi-functional integration for soft device production, such as 4D printing robots and wearable strain sensors. We anticipate that this microsphere mediating 3D printing strategy can inspire new possibilities for the design of the robust hydrogels with a broad range of functionalities and mechanical performances.

3D-printed graphene-anatase TiO2 photoanode with well-interconnected hierarchical channels for integrated self-floating photofuel cell powered by seawater pollutants

Photoelectrode architecture with well-interconnected oriented micro- and nanochannels is essential and critical for photofuel cell (PFC) to high-performance energy conversion of pollutants. However, challenges remain pertaining to manufacturing consistency and scalability, high efficiency in pollutant trapping and remarkable light absorption. Herein, a novel photoelectrode featuring porous microlattice structure was constructed via a scalable and controllable extrusion-based 3D printing strategy, with well-interconnected oriented channels as well as enriched hierarchical and open pores built by jointing tortuous photoactive graphene sheets. The unique architectural features facilitated high light absorption, and meanwhile guaranteed unimpeded channels acting as “superhighways” for rapid seawater pollutant diffusion and trapping. An integrated PFC assembled with 3D-printed photoelectrode demonstrated impressive photoelectric conversion capability for seawater pollutants under persistent self-floating and sunlight, with exceptional cycling stability and maximum power density of 0.09 mW cm−2. This work has shed light on new strategies for fabricating rational photoelectrode architectures toward high-performance PFC devices.

Customizable Low-Friction Tough Hydrogels for Potential Cartilage Tissue Engineering by a Rapid Orthogonal Photoreactive 3D-Printing Design.

Hydrogels have demonstrated wide applications in tissue engineering, but it is still challenging to develop strong, customizable, low-friction artificial scaffolds. Here, we report a rapid orthogonal photoreactive 3D-printing (ROP3P) strategy to achieve the design of high-performance hydrogels in tens of minutes. The orthogonal ruthenium chemistry enables the formation of multinetworks in hydrogels via phenol-coupling reaction and traditional radical polymerization. Further Ca2+-cross-linking treatment greatly improves their mechanical properties (6.4 MPa at a critical strain of 300%) and toughness (10.85 MJ m-3). The tribological investigation reveals that the high elastic moduli of the as-prepared hydrogels improve their lubrication (∼0.02) and wear-resistance performances. These hydrogels are biocompatible and nontoxic and promote bone marrow mesenchymal stem cell adhesion and propagation. The introduction of 1-hydroxy-3-(acryloylamino)-1,1-propanediylbisphosphonic acid units can greatly enhance their antibacterial property to kill typical Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus. Moreover, the rapid ROP3P can achieve hydrogel preparation in several seconds and is readily compatible with making artificial meniscus scaffolds. The printed meniscus-like materials are mechanically stable and can maintain their shape under long-term gliding tests. It is anticipated that these high-performance customizable low-friction tough hydrogels and the highly efficient ROP3P strategy could promote further development and practical applications of hydrogels in biomimetic tissue engineering, materials chemistry, bioelectronics, and so on.

3D-printed Lunar regolith simulant-based geopolymer composites with bio-inspired sandwich architectures

Over time, natural materials have evolved to be lightweight, high-strength, tough, and damage-tolerant due to their unique biological structures. Therefore, combining biological inspiration and structural design would provide traditional materials with a broader range of performance and applications. Here, the application of an ink-based three-dimensional (3D) printing strategy to the structural design of a Lunar regolith simulant-based geopolymer (HIT-LRS-1 GP) was first reported, and high-precision carbon fiber/quartz sand-reinforced biomimetic patterns inspired by the cellular sandwich structure of plant stems were fabricated. This study demonstrated how different cellular sandwich structures can balance the structure–property relationship and how to achieve unprecedented damage tolerance for a geopolymer composite. The results presented that components based on these biomimetic architectures exhibited stable non-catastrophic fracture characteristics regardless of the compression direction, and each structure possessed effective damage tolerance and anisotropy of mechanical properties. The results showed that the compressive strengths of honeycomb sandwich patterns, triangular sandwich patterns, wave sandwich patterns, and rectangular sandwich patterns in the <i>Y</i>-axis (<i>Z</i>-axis) direction were 15.6, 17.9, 11.3, and 20.1 MPa (46.7, 26.5, 23.8, and 34.4 MPa), respectively, and the maximum fracture strain corresponding to the above four structures could reach 10.2%, 6.7%, 5.8%, and 5.9% (12.1%, 13.7%, 13.6%, and 13.9%), respectively.

3D printing-based full-scale human brain for diverse applications.

Surgery is the most frequent treatment for patients with brain tumors. The construction of full-scale human brain models, which is still challenging to realize via current manufacturing techniques, can effectively train surgeons before brain tumor surgeries. This paper aims to develop a set of three-dimensional (3D) printing approaches to fabricate customized full-scale human brain models for surgery training as well as specialized brain patches for wound healing after surgery. First, a brain patch designed to fit a wound's shape and size can be easily printed in and collected from a stimuli-responsive yield-stress support bath. Then, an inverse 3D printing strategy, called "peeling-boiled-eggs," is proposed to fabricate full-scale human brain models. In this strategy, the contour layer of a brain model is printed using a sacrificial ink to envelop the target brain core within a photocurable yield-stress support bath. After crosslinking the contour layer, the as-printed model can be harvested from the bath to photo crosslink the brain core, which can be eventually released by liquefying the contour layer. Both the brain patch and full-scale human brain model are successfully printed to mimic the scenario of wound healing after removing a brain tumor, validating the effectiveness of the proposed 3D printing approaches.

Less is more: A strategic analysis of 3D printing with limited capacity

Conventional wisdom suggests that capacity expansion could increase (or at least not decrease) firms' profits. This paper shows that this does not always hold for 3D printing products with limited capacity. We develop a game model in which two firms have an opportunity to produce 3D printing products by investing in 3D printing technology. Generally, the capacity of 3D printing products is limited relative to traditional products, and firms usually spend a fixed cost to prepare production. We first analyse the case of a monopoly, which serves as a benchmark. Then, we examine a competing case in which we characterize the equilibrium 3D printing strategy for two firms. In the case of a monopoly, it is intuitive that the firm can benefit from 3D printing if the fixed cost is not too high. However, in the competing case, it is interesting that the two firms may be involved in a prisoner's dilemma. That is, the optimal strategy for each firm is to give up 3D printing, but the equilibrium strategy is to embrace 3D printing. Furthermore, we find that the firm gains more profit (not strictly) in the monopoly case as capacity of 3D printing increases. In the competing case, surprisingly, we find that one firm's profit may decrease as the capacity increases. Finally, we verify the robustness of the model and find that the main findings are valid even when several assumptions are relaxed.

Three-dimensional (3D) bioprinting of medium toughened dipeptide hydrogel scaffolds with Hofmeister effect

Short peptide self-assembled hydrogels as 3D bioprinting inks show excellent biocompatibility and diverse functional expansion, and have broad application prospects in cell culture and tissue engineering. However, the preparation of biological hydrogel inks with adjustable mechanical strength and controllable degradation for 3D bioprinting still faces big challenges. Herein, we develop dipeptide bio-inks that can be gelled in-situ based on Hofmeister sequence, and prepare hydrogel scaffold by using a layer-by-layer 3D printing strategy. Excitingly, after the introduction of Dulbecco's Modified Eagle's medium (DMEM), which is necessary for cell culture, the hydrogel scaffolds show an excellent toughening effect, which matches the needs of cell culture. It’s notable that in the whole process of preparation and 3D printing of hydrogel scaffolds, no cross-linking agent, ultraviolet (UV), heating or other exogenous factors are involved, ensuring high biosafety and biocompatibility. After two weeks of 3D culture, millimeter-sized cell spheres are obtained. This work provides an opportunity for the development of short peptide hydrogel bioinks without exogenous factors in 3D printing, tissue engineering, tumor simulant reconstruction and other biomedical fields.

Evolving 3D-Printing Strategies for Structural and Cosmetic Components in Upper Limb Prosthesis

The evolution of prosthetic limbs continues to develop, with novel manufacturing techniques being evaluated, including additive manufacturing. Additive manufacturing (AM), or 3D-printing, holds promise for enabling personalized and tailored medical device options. The requirements for personalized medicine, coupled with the limitations of small-batch manufacturing, have made the technique viable for exploration. In this manuscript, an approach is presented for incorporating additive manufacturing for prostheses, both as a final part and in applications as an intermediate manufacturing step. As a result, through the use of these methods a multi-gesture capable electromyographic prosthesis was designed and manufactured, currently being evaluated in clinical trials for pediatric patients. This paper explored the results of this unique method of applying additive manufacturing techniques, and assessed how the blend of different manufacturing techniques improved performance and reduced device weight. Creating unique and aesthetic cosmetic coverings for the device was achieved through using additive manufacturing as an intermediate manufacturing component and, then, applying thermoforming. Cosmesis components saw a 33% reduction in weight from this change in manufacturing. The approach is explored to blend multiple manufacturing techniques to create cosmesis components and structural components for the prosthesis. The techniques serve the design intent to reduce reported challenges with upper limb prosthesis devices and to encourage device retention. Recommendations for manufacturing strategies are discussed, including the limitations.

Large-Scale, Abrasion-Resistant, and Solvent-Free Superhydrophobic Objects Fabricated by a Selective Laser Sintering 3D Printing Strategy.

Manufacturing abrasion-resistant superhydrophobic matters is challenging due to the fragile feature of the introduced micro-/nanoscale surface roughness. Besides the long-term durability, large scale at meter level, and 3D complex structures are of great importance for the superhydrophobic objects used across diverse industries. Here it is shown that abrasion-resistant, half-a-meter scaled superhydrophobic objects can be one-step realized by the selective laser sintering (SLS) 3D printing technology using hydrophobic-fumed-silica (HFS)/polymer composite grains. The HFS grains serve as the hydrophobic guests while the sintered polymeric network provides the mechanical strength, leading to low-adhesion, intrinsic superhydrophobic objects with desired 3D structures. It is found that as-printed structures remained anti-wetting capabilities even after undergoing different abrasion tests, including knife cutting test, rude file grinding test, 1000 cycles of sandpaper friction test, tape test and quicksand impacting test, illustrating their abrasion-resistant superhydrophobic stability. This strategy is applied to manufacture a shell of the unmanned aerial vehicle and an abrasion-resistant superhydrophobic shoe, showing the industrial customization of large-scale superhydrophobic objects. The findings thus provide insight for designing intrinsic superhydrophobic objects via the SLS 3D printing strategy that might find use in drag-reduce, anti-fouling, or other industrial fields in harsh operating environments.

3D printing titanium dioxide-acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (TiO2-ABS) composite membrane for efficient oil/water separation

The oily water treatment is becoming one of the hottest topics due to that increase of offshore oil transportation and the various accident oil leakages. In this study, a functional TiO2-ABS composite membrane was generated through the three-dimensional (3D) printing strategy for the first time and was conducted to simulated oily water treatment. The TiO2-ABS composite membrane demonstrated a significant promotion in hydrophilicity and oleophobicity which were evidenced by the water contact angle of 14.8° and the underwater oil contact angle of 144.7°, respectively. The optimal modified membrane had both exceedingly high flux (1.8 × 105 L m−2·h−1) and oil rejection rate (99.5%). Moreover, the results of filtration cycles of 10 days and extended Derjaguin-Landau-Verwey-Overbeek (XDLVO) theory demonstrated that the modified membranes took possession of excellent stability and antifouling property. What was more, the TiO2-ABS composite membrane revealed over 99% rejection to all five types of oil/water systems. The interestingly experimental results indicated that the prepared membrane possessed a broad development trend and application prospect in the field of oily water treatment.

From materials to clinical use: advances in 3D-printed scaffolds for cartilage tissue engineering.

Osteoarthritis caused by articular cartilage defects is a particularly common orthopedic disease that can involve the entire joint, causing great pain to its sufferers. A global patient population of approximately 250 million people has an increasing demand for new therapies with excellent results, and tissue engineering scaffolds have been proposed as a potential strategy for the repair and reconstruction of cartilage defects. The precise control and high flexibility of 3D printing provide a platform for subversive innovation. In this perspective, cartilage tissue engineering (CTE) scaffolds manufactured using different biomaterials are summarized from the perspective of 3D printing strategies, the bionic structure strategies and special functional designs are classified and discussed, and the advantages and limitations of these CTE scaffold preparation strategies are analyzed in detail. Finally, the application prospect and challenges of 3D printed CTE scaffolds are discussed, providing enlightening insights for their current research.

3D printing of gear-inspired biomaterials: Immunomodulation and bone regeneration.

It is of significance to construct the immunomodulatory and osteogenic microenvironment for three dimension (3D) regeneration of bone tissues. 3D scaffolds, with various chemical composition, macroporous structure and surface characteristics offer a beneficial microenvironment for bone tissue regeneration. However, there is a gap between the well-ordered surface microstructure of bioceramic scaffolds and immune microenvironment for bone regeneration. In this study, a gear-inspired 3D scaffold with well-ordered surface microstructure was successfully prepared through a modified extrusion-based 3D printing strategy for immunomodulation and bone regeneration. The prepared gear-inspired scaffolds could induce M2 phenotype polarization of macrophages and further promoted osteogenic differentiation of bone mesenchymal stem cells in vitro. The subsequent in vivo study demonstrated that the gear-inspired scaffolds were able to attenuate inflammation and further promote new bone formation. The study develops a facile strategy to construct well-ordered surface microstructure which plays a key role in 3D immunomodulatory and osteogenic microenvironment for bone tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE.

Direct Conversion of Liquid Organic Precursor into 3D Laser-Induced Graphene Materials.

Among the different states of matter, liquids have particular advantages in terms of easy handling and recycling, which has been manifested in various chemosynthetic reactions, but remains underexplored in graphene synthesis. This work reports the direct conversion of liquid organic precursor into versatile 3D graphene materials using rapid laser irradiation. The liquid precursor allows for easy fabrication of graphene with significant 3D architectures, including powders, patterned composite structures, and substrate-free films. Taking advantage of the high compatibility of liquid precursor with a wide range of dopants, the 3D graphene can be further engineered together with various functional components, especially the high loading (≈15 wt.%) and well-dispersed (an average diameter of less than 50nm) high-entropy alloy nanoparticles. Furthermore, combined with the 3D printing strategy, the rapid construction of graphene with complex and accurate 3D shapes is demonstrated via a selective in situ laser transforming (SLT) strategy. With the high structural integrity unachievable by traditional 3D printing methods, the obtained objects show an electrical conductivity of 4380 Sm-1 and a compressive modulus of 31.8MPa. The results reported in this work will open up a new way for the fabrication of functional carbon materials with customizable shapes and components.

3D printed Au/rGO microlattice host for dendrite-free sodium metal anode

Sodium metal, featuring a high theoretical capacity and the lowest redox potential, is a promising anode for sodium metal batteries (SMBs). Nonetheless, issues related to the sodium metal's undesired volume expansion and dendrites formation upon cycling have greatly retarded its practical implementation. Herein, we report a robust substrate for Na metal via a novel 3D printing technology. The 3D printed Au/rGO electrodes are capable of delivering remarkable cycling lives over 2000 h (1 mA cm−2, 1 mAh cm−2) and 1200 h (5 mAh cm−2, 5 mAh cm−2) respectively. Even at 8 mAh cm−2, 8 mAh cm−2, an Au/rGO electrode still sustains a stable operation over 220 h. In-situ optical microscopy clearly demonstrates a dendrite-free Na ion deposition process on an Au/rGO electrode surface. Moreover, in-situ X-ray diffraction (XRD) characterization and theoretical calculations unraveled mechanisms for the stable Na ion deposition. Upon assembling with a 3D printed Na3V2(PO4)3@C cathode (∼15.2 mg cm−2), obtained SMBs deliver a reversible capacity of 84.95 mAh g−1 at 100 mA g−1 after 205 cycles. This work establishes an alternative 3D printing strategy for enhancing Na deposition chemistry for high-energy-density SMBs.