Scientists harnessed the unique properties of gallium to create the ink, which can be produced using conventional printing methods.

Scientists from The Hebrew University of Jerusalem have created wood ink that can be extruded into flat wooden structures, self-morphing into complex 3D shapes as they dry and shrink.

Made of ink infused with the ceramic indium oxide, the 4cm monoliths are created by extruding the ink from a 3D printer—like squeezing toothpaste from a tube—and forming it into a lattice shape.

The microbial ink flows like toothpaste under pressure and can be 3D-printed into various tiny shapes — a circle, a square and a cone — all of which hold their form and glisten like Jell-O.

Like 3-D printing, a nozzle deposits a substance on a sheet, creating a shape. What’s different is the make-up of the ink composites. These are composed of a hydrogel–a Jello-like substance of ...

To convert wood scraps into ink for 3D printing, the researchers started by combining just lignin and cellulose, keeping the ratio of these materials the same as that found in natural wood.