3D Printing Technologies for Biopolymers

Dear Colleagues,

The rapid convergence of additive manufacturing and biopolymer science is redefining sustainable material design, enabling complex, functional, and patient-specific structures with unprecedented precision. This Special Issue invites high-impact contributions that advance the formulation, processing, and application of natural and synthetic biopolymers, including hydrogels, polysaccharides, polyesters, bio-composites, and smart materials, tailored for 3D printing modalities such as FDM/FFF, SLA/DLP, SLS, DIW, and bioprinting.

We particularly welcome studies addressing key challenges such as limited thermal stability, moisture sensitivity, weak interlayer adhesion, suboptimal rheology, and mechanical limitations. Our topics of interest span novel material design, reactive and multi-material printing strategies, stimuli-responsive (4D) systems, in situ crosslinking mechanisms, gradient architectures, and advanced bioinks for tissue engineering, controlled drug delivery, soft robotics, food engineering, and sustainable packaging.

By integrating perspectives from materials science, biotechnology, engineering, and applied sciences, this Special Issue aims to present the latest developments, highlight remaining bottlenecks, and showcase transformative solutions that expand the performance, scalability, and real-world impact of 3D-printed biopolymer systems. We welcome original research, reviews, and short communications pushing the boundaries of functionality and sustainability.

Prof. Dr. Cem Bulent Ustundag
Dr. Fatih Ciftci
Dr. Ali Can Ozarslan
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the Special Issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-anonymized peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Polymers is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.