CHEM 262L -Laboratory in Organic Chemistry: 3D Printing Molecules

There are several ways to produce a 3D molecular model for 3D printing. This particular method uses UCSF Chimera, a program for interactive visualization and analysis of molecular structure. Chimera may be downloaded from the given link.

Note: some people have been having problems loading .mol files into Chimera on Mac OS X. 

If you have any questions on this process, please email Jordan Green, Science and Technology librarian email us for a consultation.

1. If you have your desired molecule in ChemDraw, download your molecule as an MDL Molfile (*.mol)

2. In Chimera, load the .MOL file: File > Open...

3. Alternatively, you can search for a particular molecule in PubChem, note the CID number, and fetch the molecular: File > Fetch by ID...

4. Your molecule should appear on the Chimera screen as a stick model.If you would like to use a ball-and-stick model, select Actions > Atoms.Bonds > ball & stick

If you would like to change the size of the balls or sticks:

1. Select > Select All
2. Actions > Inspect and a new inspect window will open up
3. Next to Inspect, select Atom or Bond on the drop down menu, and change the radius as you like

5. To save as an .STL file for printing, select File > Export Scene... and  be sure to select File type: STL [.stl]

6. If you are printing a ball and stick model you will also need to make the model solid by using Meshmixer. Meshmixer is free to download. Import the file into Meshmixer: File > Import

1. From the left-hand menu, select Edit > Make Solid
2. On the Make Solid window, set Solid Accuracy to the maximum of 512
3. Press the Update, then the Accept button
4. An object browser window will appear; showing filename and filename (solid)
5. Select filename, and click the trash can button
6. Export the file as an stl again

7. Your molecule .STL file is ready to print!

1. To print the molecule yourself, go to BeAM at Murray Hall or Carmichael Hall. You'll need to take the orientation and 3D printer training first; please see the BeAM website for training dates and details. 
2. If you need additional assistance, please email us for a consultation at librarymakerspace@unc.edu