3D printers have enormous potential for developing creativity, from creating personalized toys or home decor to miniature models of any object to sell and make money from home. One company has gone a step further and aims to improve marine life.
Anya Freeman runs the company Kind Designs and has designed living sea walls using 3D printing. The aim is to control water in flood-prone areas such as the Dutch coast without damaging the local ecosystem.
The company has designed the containment dams and has collaborated with Cybe to print them in 3D. Cybe robots are some of the fastest on the market and They can print up to 500 mm/secondThe precision of these machines must be very high, as the living dikes are only a few centimetres thick.
Kind Designs has freedom of design, so the first prototype mimics the roots of the mangrove, a marine shrub. Costs are another aspect of this project that stands out, Freeman explained in a statement. interview to BBC.
Can 3D printed walls protect marine life?
3D printed dams They imitate marine habitats thanks to the microdesign of their walls. The material is free of metals and chlorides, so it does not release chemicals into the ocean. All of this allows corals and small organisms to attach.
The prints can be tailored to the ecosystem of each area, Freeman said. The initial project replicates the structure of Florida’s mangroves, but can be adapted to other areas of the planet with relative ease.
Kind Designs has just installed the first seawalls in the United States and has begun collecting data on the impact on marine biodiversity. The first results are positive and indicate that the life of the species that lived in the environment has been preserved. Other previous studies show that they even help to increase the number of specimens over the years.
Anya Freeman says the dams meet 15 water quality parameters. Each dam has sensors for chemicals and contaminants present in the water and Obtain data in real time, creating an entire information network.
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Tags: 3D Printers, Curious Inventions
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