3D PRINTING/ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING FEATURE


Post Processing solutions for am


Many companies have reached the conclusion that additive manufacturing will make them less dependent on traditional supply chains. But with post processing operations needing to comply with the requirements for volume production, AM Solutions - 3D post processing technology, a division of the Rösler group, is meeting these challenges with new solutions for the automated post processing and refinement of 3D printed metal and plastic components


The S2 system


is a continuous flow shot blast


machine for post processing of 3D printed plastic


components produced with powder-bed printing systems


W


ith additive manufacturing, companies can become less dependent on traditional supply chains while making


their production operations more flexible and faster. However, the post-processing of 3D printed components is frequently a stumbling block. On the one hand many post processing steps


still require costly manual work; and on the other the post processing operations are limited to handling single components or extremely small production lots. This does not allow compliance with the established standards for volume production – namely consistent and repeatable product quality, process control, cost-efficiency and sustainability. AM Solutions - 3D post processing technology, a division of the Rösler group that specialises in the automated post processing of 3D printed components produced in large volumes, now offers new equipment that allows a way out of this dilemma.


Post Processing Parts


With the new S2 system, AM Solutions offers a continuous flow shot blast machine for post processing of 3D printed plastic components produced with powder-bed printing systems. The ATEX compliant plug-and-play machine was designed for round-the-clock three-shift


operation and is equipped with interfaces allowing its integration into interlinked manufacturing lines. The work pieces are loaded into the machine


as complete print jobs. The plastic components are then gently passed through a special feed loop belt in single piece flow. The tumbling action of the components ensures that they are equally blasted from all sides so that any residual powder is removed from the component surface. Depending on the blast media used, the work piece surface can also be homogenised and/or peened. The machine can be equipped with up to four blast nozzles; and the blast pressure and transport speed can be individually adapted to the respective work pieces. These process parameters can then be stored in the control panel as individual processing recipes. On average, a print job requires cycle times of 15 to 20 minutes. Depending on the condition of the raw work pieces, the Ra surface roughness readings can be reduced by up to 13µm. To ensure that the blast media remains at a


consistently high quality, the compact shot blast machine is equipped with an effective blast media cleaning and recycling system. This, in combination with the integrated electronic


reporting tool, guarantees repeatability of the blasting results, complete process control and a high cost-efficiency of the post processing operation. A patent application covering the machine and the process is pending.


smoothing surfaces


The patent-pending C2 enables fully automatic chemical surface smoothing of 3D printed components made of common polymers and elastomers (including TPU) in series. Thus, the costly single piece handling of the work pieces is completely eliminated for this post processing operation. The bounding box allows the processing of work piece dimensions ranging from 10 x 10 x 10 to 300 x 300 x 300mm and a wall thickness of at least 2mm. In addition, the process includes a newly developed, non-hazardous processing media that was specially developed by AM Solutions - 3D post processing technology. This ensures that the surface smoothing operation is not only eco-friendly but that the subsequent waste disposal is not subject to any environmental restrictions and is cost-effective. The C2 chemical surface smoothing system


can be retrofitted to apply a colour dye on plastic components. This will be available in the first quarter of 2022.


wet blasting


Wet blasting has been a well-established and efficient surface refinement process for metal or plastic components produced in large volumes. With the S1 Wet system, the company has adapted the benefits of this surface treatment method to the specific requirements of additive manufacturing. The highly flexible S1 blast system can be used for cleaning as well as surface homogenisation and smoothing of a wide array of work pieces. A key feature of this technology is that the blast media and process water are mixed together to create a slurry. Depending on the initial surface roughness


of the work pieces, their Ra readings can be significantly reduced. To a certain extent this is even possible on internal surface passages and cavities. Since the water in the slurry creates a protective layer on the components, the process is very gentle,and it also prevents media particles from penetrating the surface of components made from plastic and soft metals. Another advantage is that it maintains the dimensional integrity and prevents the warping of delicate work pieces with complex shapes and thin walls. Wet blasting also prevents the creation of dust and, therefore, requires no protective ATEX accessories. Another feature of the S1 Wet system is its


small footprint. The discharged wastewater flows into a settle tank to collect most of the sludge, which can be further de-watered by an optional process water cleaning and recycling system integrated into the S1 machine. This reduces the water consumption and waste disposal costs significantly. Additional equipment options allow the utilisation of the S1 Wet ranging from the manual treatment of single components to the fully automatic processing of complete work piece batches.


Rösler Group www.rosler.com


NOVEMBER 2021 DESIGN SOLUTIONS 41


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