Start-up 2024: Implantes Osteoregenerativos Impresos a Medida

Building on the development of ImplantaOss®, a PLA/HA-based composite biomaterial for bone regeneration, COLFEED4Print addresses in this project one of the main technological challenges associated with 3D-printed biodegradable implants: the lack of comprehensive in vitro and in vivo characterization and robust regulatory pathways for composite regenerative biomaterials.

The project seeks to establish a precedent in the field of regenerative composite biomaterials by implementing simulation-driven design and developing novel in vitro–in vivo correlation models (IVIVC). These models will enable the prediction of in vivo changes in mechanical and functional properties based on in vitro degradation data, accounting for variations in material composition and 3D-printed structure and paving the way for more efficient development and validation of patient-specific bone-regenerative implants. Moreover, by integrating experimental data with optimized simulation models, the project aims to design implants adapted to real functional and load-bearing conditions required for in vivo applications.

In parallel, COLFEED4Print will address the regulatory barriers to market entry by defining a new working methodology intended to shorten regulatory timelines for this class of biomaterials. Given that PLA/HA composite implants currently lack the extensive in vitro/in vivo studies and regulatory background available for other biodegradable polymers, the core innovation of the project lies in achieving a complete in vitro and in vivo characterization of ImplantaOss®, developing a novel methodological framework to establish clear relationships between biodegradation behavior, mechanical properties, and implant architecture defined during the printing process.

Source: 09-STR1-00086.3/2025

Grant: 74,672.23€

GEAR-UP – Green Engineering, Analysis, & Reskilling for Unbounded Production

Printing of biomimetic and regenerative bone implants

Based on the previously developed FOss-HA, a line of biodegradable, cost-effective biomaterials, COLFEED4Print has registered ImplantaOss® — an osteoinductive material containing a 20% volume of HA particles in a PLA matrix, designed for in-house 3D printing of bone-regenerative implants.

In this new project, developed in collaboration with UCO and CSIC-ICV, we aim to expand the material portfolio by exploring alternative additives to enhance the mechanical and regenerative properties of ImplantaOss®, improving its clinical applicability. Therefore, Mg-based particles—known to enhance osteoinduction and catalyze PLA degradation— and cellulose nanofibers—valued for their natural origin and potential as bioprinting scaffolds and structural modifiers— will be studied to determine their biocompatibility, biodegradation and the potential changes induced in the mechanical properties of the implant. The ultimate goal is to establish optimized printing profiles that correlate material composition with biological performance, enabling tailored solutions for pediatric and oncologic bone regeneration.

Collaborators: ICV-CSIC – UCO

Legal responsible: Dr. Juan A. Escribano

IP: Dr. Begoña Ferrari

Source: CPP2023-010820

Start: 15/11/2024

Duration: 3 years

Total Budget: 443,378.36€    Budget (COLFEED4Print): 210,399.42 €

Total Grant: 125,307.82€      Grant (COLFEED4Print): 58,844.02€

Innovation and applied research projects and knowledge transfer in Career Training in 2023. Design and manufacture of titanium prostheses using additive manufacturing

Additive Manufacturing (AM) is becoming established across multiple industries as a key tool for producing short series and prototypes. This expansion has created a growing demand for professionals specialized in AM, a field that encompasses a wide range of technologies and materials. In particular, metal AM is gaining prominence in sectors such as aerospace and biomedical engineering, thanks to its ability to produce complex geometries that are unfeasible with conventional processes like machining. Even so, metal AM continues to face technical and implementation challenges that must be overcome in order to expand its industrial presence.

This project has a dual purpose. On one hand, it aims to bring Additive Manufacturing closer to Vocational Training centers, helping to train qualified professionals who can meet current market needs. On the other hand, it seeks to provide a socially valuable service by researching the fabrication of customized titanium prostheses using a fused filament fabrication (FFF) 3D printer. Since these machines are accessible and easy to operate, the goal is to democratize the production of personalized healthcare solutions. Furthermore, because this technological application is linked to the health sector—an area with a higher female presence compared to STEAM fields—this initiative is expected to help attract more women to technical training programs.

Collaborators: Institut Pere Martell – Mondragón Goi Eskola Politeknikoa (MGEP) – Goierri Eskola

Legal responsible: Dr. Juan A. Escribano

IP: Dr. Begoña Ferrari

Source:  AINN23/00364

Start: 01/07/2024

Duration: 18 months

Total Budget: 114,962.00€              Budget (COLFEED4Print): 15,000.00€

NET4MAT – Building knowledge and tools for the sustainable microbial fighting through sensing and responsive polysaccharide-based materials

The worldwide pollution triggered by non-biodegradable plastics requires alternative sustainable/eco-friendly materials for all applications. On the other hand, pathogenic microbial resistance is demanding the development of materials that accurately detect and actuate against pathogenic microorganisms. With the goal to propose a solution to both of these issues, NET4MAT will bring together experts with complementary skills, building an interdisciplinary and intersectoral consortium between academia, research institutes and industry. The NET4MAT network will explore the feasibility of combining microbial sensing lanthanide-glycoclusters and antimicrobial porphyrinoids with biodegradable and biocompatible polysaccharide-based formulations. With UAveiro focused on synthesizing porphyrinoids and processing 3D structures using the functional polysaccharide-based formulations; CSIC dedicated to extruding bionanocomposites; and DTU focused on electrospinning of NET4MAT materials, we aim to further research in developing microbial sensing and responsive biodegradable materials. Furthermore, UCD will be focused on the synthesis of lanthanide-glycoclusters; GINP, pioneers in using nanocarbohydrates as biocomposites fillers, will improve the materials processability; and HUJI will evaluate the materials antimicrobial activity, biodegradability, and biocompatibility. All together, along with NOFIMA, SPARTHA, BLAFAR, COLFEED, BEEVC, and COMPONIT will define pathways to scale-up/demonstrate the NET4MAT prototypes, generating skills in different interconnected fields. HISEEDTECH will help NET4MAT partners create value from knowledge through technology entrepreneurship and open innovation. This consortium involves early-stage/senior researchers that by sharing know-how will optimize the best strategies for developing microbial sensing/responsive polysaccharide-based materials, raising up a disruptive breakthrough towards on-demand development antimicrobial biodegradable plastics.

This project is a Staff Exchange action of the MSCA program of the Horizon Europe Framework funded by the European Commission.

IP: Dr. Ana Ferrandez

Source: HORIZON-MSCA-2022-SE-01 (MSCA Staff Exchanges 2022)

Start: 01/01/2024

Duration: 48 months

Total Budget: 460,000.00 €           Budget (COLFEED4Print): 41,400.00 €

Eco-efficient 3D printing of MultiMaterials with photo- & electrochemical activity for water treatment and the green H2 generation

This project addresses the challenges of rapid prototyping of advanced, environmentally friendly, low-cost and high-efficiency photo- and electrochemical devices as part of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development of the United Nations General Assembly.

COLFEED, in collaboration with the Tailoring through Colloidal Processing group, plans to validate and evaluate fused filament fabrication (FFF) technology as a prototyping method for these membranes. Moreover, in the case of membranes which semiconducting particles have electrochemical properties, the direct application will be not only water treatment, but also water splitting photoreaction for the generation of green hydrogen. In this way, the project pursues optimisation and eco-efficiency in the manufacturing process of membranes with photo and electrochemical activity, trying to tackle not only the current issue of water resource pollution but also the energy crisis, providing a suitable solution for obtaining green hydrogen as an energy vector, as an alternative technology to current hydrogen storage systems.

The industrial doctorate is developed by Pablo Ortega Columbrans, Senior Chemical Engineer under the direction of Dr. Begoña Ferrari from Tailoring through Colloidal Processing group (CSIC-ICV) and Dr. Juan A. Escribano.

This project is funded by the Vicepresidencia, Consejería de Educación y Universidades from la Comunidad de Madrid.

Collaborators: ICV-CSIC

IP: Dr. Begoña Ferrari

Source: Ayudas para la realización de doctorados industriales en la Comunidad de Madrid (2022) – IND2022/IND-23603

Start: 01/12/2022

Duration: 36 months

Total Budget: 150,000.00 €           Budget (COLFEED4Print): 60,000.00 €

FILAMENT-OSS HA

At COLFEED4Print, we’ve aimed part of our research at finding a solution for the elevation of the maxillofacial sinus on which dental implants are placed through the incorporation of ceramic materials in additive manufacturing, based on the knowledge generated at the Institute of Ceramics and Glass (ICV) of the CSIC, of which we are a spin-off.

FOss HA is a resorbable and osseointegrated biomaterial in filament format for the in situ 3D printing of customised osteoinductive structures. The most significant features of our materials are their mechanical consistency and their ability to be customised to the patient. With our innovative colloidal wet-mixing process, a high degree of dispersion and homogenisation of the osteoinductive phase within the resorbable polymer is achieved, which is not possible with conventional processes.

This project, funded by the Centre for the Development of Industrial Technology (CDTI), is dedicated to the implementation of an exclusive production line for FOss-HA, with the aim of achieving the necessary certifications that will allow it to be used for the printing of 3D parts for maxillofacial bone regeneration. For this, it will also be necessary to verify and validate the biocompatible, biodegradable, osteoconductive and osseointegrative properties of the filaments both in vitro and in vivo. 

Collaborators: ICV-CSIC 

Legal responsible: Dr. Juan A. Escribano

IP (COLFEED): Dr. Ana Ferrández (Business Developer FILAMENT-Oss)

Source: NEOTEC 2021 (CDTI) supported by MICINN, SNEO-20211395

Start: 01/01/2022

Duration: 24 months

Budget: 324.875€  Grant: 276.143€

VIVALDI: “CERAMIC AND METALLIC WASTE VALORIZATION THROUGH DUST GENERATION FOR ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING AND OTHER HIGH-VALUE-ADDED APPLICATIONS”

The VIVALDI project is a collaborative business initiative, funded by the Centre for the Development of Industrial Technology (CDTI), whose general objective is to carry out industrial research into the recovery of composite, metallic and ceramic material waste by generating recycled powders for incorporation into the feedstock of additive manufacturing processes, such as Fused Feedstock Manufacturing (FFM) and Selective Laser Melting (SLM) and Laser Cladding (LC). 

The VIVALDI project’s goal is to investigate into how to obtain recycled powder from high-tech materials, such as titanium (Ti), aluminium (Al), tungsten carbide (WC) and carbon fiber (CF), using different routes and processes, such as centrifugal atomisation or microwave plasmonisation and thermochemical processes for the prior recycling of the composites. The revalorised powder will then be incorporated into the raw material in additive manufacturing technologies, such as FFM or SLM, which would benefit from the synergy of the project by simultaneously researching into manufacturing equipment engineering (FFM, SLM) and valorisation/granulation processes, in order to offer feedstock and equipment currently not available on the market.

In the VIVALDI project, recycled particles will be combined with commercial particles when generating feedstock for additive manufacturing in order to maintain the properties of the final parts. The project has set an ambitious target of generating print feedstock with at least 15% recycled material by volume. The project will also investigate the 3D printing process, as well as the subsequent debinding and sintering processes of these new materials.

Participant Companies: BCN3D(Coordinator); BCIRCULAR COMPOSITES, COLFEED4Print, GRUPAL ART, SAMYLABS AND TM COMAS

Collaborators: Eurecat, CIM UPC, CSIC-ICV and CSIC-CENIM.

Legal responsible: Dr. Juan A. Escribano

IP (COLFEED): Dr. Begoña Ferrari

Source: MISIONES CIENCIA E INNOVACIÓN 2021 (CDTI) supported by MICINN, MIP-20211033

Start: 01/11/2021

Duration: 26 months

Total Budget: 1.720.818€     Grant: 1.182.657€

Budget (COLFEED4Print): 202.925€   Grant (COLFEED4Print): 156.915€