Scientists have demonstrated a form of printable wood-based ink that morphs into complex shapes as moisture evaporatesA lot of work goes into creating wooden objects like furniture, with the timber needing to be harvested, treated, cut into shape and finished. Some scientists are rethinking this process with some interesting results, and researchers from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem have put forward a particularly creative example. The team's technology sees a wood-based ink 3D printed into flat shapes, which then morph into more complex 3D forms as they dry out.
The technology hinges on the way water content can influence the shape of wood, such as a tree deforming after it is cut down and begins to dry out. This is due to the configuration of fibers within the material, which vary in their orientation and cause the wood to shrink in a non-uniform manner as moisture evaporates. By leveraging this characteristic, the scientists were able to come up with a way of carefully manipulating this morphing process to produce desired three-dimensional shapes.
