3D PRINT COMPOUNDS | TECHNOLOGY
New developments in additive manufacturing — 3D print — materials include easier processing, higher performance, and improved sustainability. Mikell Knights reports
3D printing technology builds on innovation
The increasing breadth of the current portfolio of polymer materials for additive manufacturing underlines with certainty the continuing transition of 3D print from prototyping solution to production technology. This transition is highlighted by UK-based market research company IDTechEx, which says increasing the available polymer materials portfolio for additive manufacturing and reducing materials cost are two key market forces influencing polymer materials development. With this in mind, more thermoplastic powders, thermoplastic resins, thermoplastic filaments and photopolymers are being developed, including new grades formulated with properties that improve flexibility, reinforcement, and toughness. And these materials are designed for a broader array of applications, including medical, industrial, and dental, according to IDTechEx. 3D printing technologies also continue to
expand to suit the wider materials and application requirements, with reactive thermoset extrusion, selective thermoplastic electrophotographic
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process (STEP) and others being developed. New 3D technology approaches incorporate additive design techniques such as generative design and lattice structuring to reduce materials consumption compared to traditionally manufactured parts, so reducing the total materials cost per part. Other solutions to address material costs include development of less-expensive feedstocks by incorporation of waste or recycled material. Japan’s Toray Industries has launched a series of spherical PA6 particles for powder bed fusion 3D printers that reduce the need for polishing and post processing of printed shapes created from PA12 polymer particles, which tend to be irregular in shape. Surface roughness, which can be created in moulded objects that have microscopic peaks and troughs, affects part precision, surface feel, sealing and coating performance, according to the company. The new Toraypearl PA6 material is said to have truly spherical-shaped particles that can produce complex and precise 3D printed parts displaying a smoother surface. The shape ensures the fluidity
Main image: Developers of 3D print materials such as Finke are addressing every user demand, extending from performance to aesthetics
May 2023 | COMPOUNDING WORLD 15
IMAGE: FINKE
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