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One of the most common orthopedic injuries is fracture found on the metacarpal bones of the hand. It is composed of 14-28 % emergency room cases in hospitals. Despite its frequent occurrence, they are often neglected which may lead to major disability or deformity that limits movement. This is merely due to the high cost of treatment which includes the usage of an external metacarpal fixator. In this paper, an external metacarpal fixator clamp with additive manufacturing polymer material is evaluated based on scenarios of flexural and compressive load on the metacarpal bone with simulated fracture. The material is selected using Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) multi-attribute decision making. Finite Element Analysis (FEA) is also done with increasing load per scenario. The result shows nylon as a suitable polymer additive manufacturing material for external metacarpal fixator. The equivalent stress on the fixator clamp and the deformation at a maximum load of 120 N is less than 1 Mpa and 0.5 mm, respectively. This comprises the suitability of 3D printed polymer material for an external metacarpal application. Future studies of comparison of FEA simulation and actual 3D printed part is recommended.

Chromium ions and other heavy metals discarded from major industries, if left unchecked, will make their way into waterways and may contaminate food crops, which can cause various chronic and acute health problems. As such, the Department of Science and Technology - Philippine Nuclear Research Institute (DOST-PNRI) developed radiation-grafted wastewater filters that selectively collect trivalent chromium ions from wastewater. To house these filters with the appropriate flow characteristics, column enclosures suitable for rapid prototyping via additive manufacturing, were designed and simulated. The column has two main components: the main chamber, which houses the filter; and an inner core, where the filter fabric is wound, and which evenly distributes the water flow along its length. Different core slit configurations were presented, giving emphasis on the flow uniformity, with the aim of maximizing the filter life.

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