Chemical analysis

3D printing for chemical analysis

The faculty of science at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam studies Melt Inclusions (MI) in minerals to understand how continents and ocean islands in the ocean's floor form. 

To enable this study the melts have to be in a homogeneous state, which in >90% is not the case. VU Amsterdam has setup an experiment to apply a heating process to make study possible. 

With help of 3D printed ceramic parts, a heating stage was made to perform homogenisation experiments. This has been found successful and now analysis of Melt Inclusions can be performed. 

Download case study

Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam Earth Science Department

The department of Earth Sciences studies the Earth as a fully coupled system with emphasis on the interactions between the geo-, hydro-, bio-, cryo-, and atmosphere. Main goal is to improve understanding of the process (including anthropogenic) that ultimately shape our planet and affect our daily lives. Earth science is vital to the future of society. 
VU AMS logo

Research into deep Earth processes that shape the planet, into the evolution and change of past and present Climate and into scarcity of Resources such as economically relevant minerals, oil and water are fundamental to sustainable use of Earth's resources. These research efforts require a complex Earth system approach of both an experimental and theoretical nature. VU Amsterdam uses state of the art in-house and field laboratories, complemented with a suite of modelling and Earth Observation tools to achieve research goals.