The Materials

What resources can be utilised for 3D printing?

Selecting the right 3D printing material designed for your project is vital. Which material is most suitable is largely dependent upon your specific use circumstance. In this section, you’ll locate the most frequent 3D printing materials. Read more about them, evaluate them side-by-area and pick yours.

Prototyping Plastic

Prototyping plastics, printed about FDM printers, are perfect for designers and engineers to cost- effectively generate and test a design. Rapid low priced prototyping allows for more design iterations leading to greater control over the look procedure and improved end goods. Furthermore, products could be brought to market faster. Prototyping plastic are suitable for fit or variety checks but are also suitable for printing functional parts such as for example enclosures and custom made piping.

Strengths

• Rapid turnaround time
• Inexpensive
• Form and Fit prototyping

###Limitations

• Tolerance of +/- 1mm
• Overhangs require support which will affect surface finish
• Print layers are visible
• Anistropic (weak in the Z direction)

High Detail Resin

UV-cured resin prints display excellent details, sharpened edge and even finish. Colour availability is limited, but it is conveniently printable and can be semi-translucent.

High Aspect Resin is suitable for printing intricate design and sculptures, just as up to 0.2mm will do to create clearly obvious details. Aside from size, resin includes almost no design restrictions.

Strengths

• Intricate design and sculptures
• Small, high detail models
• Jewellery, art
• Investment casting

Limitations

• Large models
• Extensive contact with UV-light

SLS Nylon

SLS (Selective Laser beam Sintering) runs on the laser to shape and variety extremely thin layers of powdered materials by melting it together one-by-one to create a solid structure.

The advantage of this technique is that the surplus unmelted powder acts as a support to the structure since it is being produced which allows for complex condition to be made and no additional support are required.

Strengths

• Functional prototypes and end product
• Complex design with elaborate details
• Moving and assemble parts
• cases, holders, adapters

Limitations

• Cavities within design (unless making make use of escape holes)

Fiber-Reinforced Nylon

Fiber-reinforced Nylon materiel are created to print parts with the strength of metal. Because of Markforged’s continuous fiber fabrication process, now you can 3D print parts with a higher strength-to-weight ratio than 6061-T6 Aluminium, up to 27x stiffer and 24x more powerful than ABS.

Available material include Carbon, Kevlar and Fiberglass reinforced nylon, allowing you to optimize your print for strength, stiffness, weight and temperature resistance.

Strength

• Engineering parts
• Custom end-use production parts
• Functional prototyping and testing
• Structural parts
• Jigs, fixtures and other tooling

Limitations

• Little parts with intricate details

Rigid Opaque Plastic

Rigid Opaque Plastic material (Vero) is the go-to material for natural prototypes, providing excellent details, substantial accuracy and smooth surface area complete with up to 16 micron layer heights.

With Rigid Opaque Plastic, you can 3D printing attractive prototypes that closely resemble the ‘look’ of the finish product and test fit, form and function, even for moving and assembled parts.

Strengths

• Fine-detail models with soft surface
• Form and Fit testing
• Sales, advertising and exhibition models
• Moving and assembled parts

Limitations

• End goods (sensitive to UV-Light)

Rubber-Like Plastic

With Rubber-Like Plastic material (Tango), you can simulate rubber with various degrees of elastomer characteristics including Shore Scale A hardness, elongation at break, tear level of resistance and tensile strength.

This material permits you to simulate a multitude of finished products, such as for example non-slip or soft surfaces on consumer electronics, medical gadgets and automotive interiors.

Strength

• Detailed model with numerous degree of flexibility (shore A 27 to 95)
• Soft-feel coatings, grips or non-slip surfaces
• Fine details and easy surfaces
• Overmolding solid things with rubber-like surroundings

Limitations

• End goods (sensitive to UV-light)

Transparent Plastic

Transparent plastic is one of the clearest 3D printing components available; combining clarity with huge precision and smooth floor finish.

This material is suitable for form and fit testing of see-though parts, fine-detail model building, helping you to prototype clear and tinted products from eye wear and lighting cover to medical products.

Strength

• Form and in shape testing of see-through portion like: glass consumer goods, eye wear, lighting covers and cases.
• Fine-detail models with soft surface.
• Sales, marketing and exhibition models.
• Medical or scientific visualizations.

Limitations

• End items (sensitive to UV-Light)

Simulated ABS

Simulated Abs is designed to imitate ABS engineering plastic by simply merging strength with high-temperature resistance. It offers high impact resistance and shook absorption along with a beautiful smooth surface area finish.

With Simulated ABS, you can create high precision engineering tools in addition to tough and durable prototypes. It’s the fastest & most affordable way to produce large precision injection molds for tiny injection moulding operates of 10-100 pieces.

Strengths

• Molds, including injection molds
• Tough and heat resistant prototypes
• Fine-detail models with soft surfaces
• Form, suit, and functional testing

Limitations

• End products (sensitive to UV-Light)

Full Colour Sandstone

Gypsum with a good coloured consistency on the surface. The best choice for photo-realistic, colour prints. Ideal for professional (scale) version, architecture, product design and fine arts.

COLOR Sandstone doesn’t allow for protruding features smaller than 3 millimetres because of the brittleness of the material. also wall need to wider than 2 millimetres.

Strength

• Architectural models.
• Lifelike sculptures.
• Gifts and memorabilia.
• Complex models.

Limitations

• Functional parts
• Intricate feature

Industrial Metals

Direct metallic 3D printing allows you to create efficient prototypes and mechanical parts from many metal and alloys.

Industrial metals are laser sintered from metallic powder. Available elements include aluminium, stainless steel, bronze and cobalt chromium.

Strength

• Functional prototypes and end-use parts
• Complex designs with intricate details
• Mechanical parts
• Moving and assembled parts

Limitations

• Cavities within design (unless making usage of escape holes)

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