How Melt electrowriting works
MEW is an emerging additive manufacturing technique that allows for high resolution deposition of polymer melt jets into scaffolds. The application of high voltage (HV) causes the jet to stretch and the high precision collector movement enables the controlled lay-down pattern of the jet. The mechanical properties of the scaffolds are not only dictated by the material properties alone, but the morphology in which they are arranged.
MEW is in essence an integration of two other additive manufacturing techniques, being fused deposition modelling and electrospinning. MEW boasts clinically relevant advantages over both other methods with respect to tissue engineering and biomimicry. Firstly, MEW enables higher resolution prints with fibre diameters ranging from as low as 200 nm to 50 μm, which facilitates more complex morphologies and thus potentially greater biomimicry. Since the flow rate out of the nozzle can be finely tuned through a combination of printing parameters, this allows for controlled variation of fibre diameters throughout the printing process. In conclusion, MEW has unlocked the potential for never-before-seen levels of bio-inspired design and anisotropy through the above advantages which paves the way towards truly replicating native tissue.