3D printing glass is absolutely fascinating

Aug 27, 2015 12:36 GMT  ·  By

3D printing every object we need is clearly how we will manufacture things in the future, but one step at a time researchers and scientists are making it a reality.

Recently, scientists at MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) managed to develop a method of 3D printing glass. As an internal collaboration between different MIT departments, like MIT’s Mediated Matter Group, MIT Glass Lab, and MIT’s Mechanical Engineering Department, the result was the development of the world’s first fully functional method for optically transparent 3D printed glass.

To demonstrate the new method of 3D printing, the guys at MIT made a beautiful video, showing how a 3D printer glass heats and coils the glass at extreme temperatures, as high as high as 1,037 degrees Celsius and then shows how the golden melted glass extrudes out from the 3D printer's nozzle. The melted glass looks so beautiful that it could be mistaken with honey when poured into a shape.

To resist the massive heat emanated by the melted glass, the 3D printer's nozzle is made from ceramic, and is specially shaped to ensure it delivers the material with a certain diameter. The diameter controls the shape and the amount of melted glass it gets cooled in the end.

The technique chosen for 3D printing glass is basically a blend of conventional glass making technique together with a digitally controlled nozzle that layers the glass in a preferred CAD layout. Although being a successful experiment, it will take some time to commonly 3D print glass around the world. MIT's efforts have been, however, a positive step in that direction.