Technology News | Aircraft parts are actually 3D printed. Have you seen these 10 3D printing materials?

The 3D printing technology is being used more and more widely in industries such as aerospace and medical. For example, the central wing slats on the C919 aircraft that appeared in the National Day "Innovation-Driven" themed parade were successfully printed in January 2012.

Maybe you haven’t had the chance to experience the fun of 3D printing yourself, but you might as well learn about 10 common 3D printing materials to bring more inspiration to your work.

Reprinted from: https://www.rs-online.com/designspark/3d-19-cn

Text and pictures from author: Pua Cheng Lin

With the development of 3D printing, 3D printing has already entered people's lives. More and more printing technologies are available, and the materials used for printing are also increasing, which is dazzling. Today, let's take a look at some common 3D printing materials.

PLA is the most popular FDM (Fused Deposition Modeling) material. It releases less toxic gases than ABS during printing, and it is made from renewable materials such as corn, so PLA is also called a "green material". In addition, PLA does not shrink as much as ABS during cooling during printing, and the printing platform does not need to be heated all the time like ABS, which is also why it is popular.

Printing head temperature: 180°-230°

Platform bottom plate temperature during printing: 20°-60° (optional)

Cooling shrinkage: Very small

Soluble in: None

Hardness: High

Elasticity: Low

Durability: High

ABS is the second most popular material in FDM printing after PLA. It is flexible, lightweight, low cost, and durable, but it shrinks greatly when cooled. The platform needs to be heated during the printing process, otherwise it will cause problems such as the first layer warping up. Its melting point is also higher than PLA (about 150°), about 200 degrees. Toy cars and other things are mainly made of ABS.

Print head temperature: 210°-250°

Printing temperature: 80°-110°

Cooling shrinkage: Need to be considered

Soluble in: esters, ketones, etc.

Hardness: High

Elasticity: Medium

Durability: High

Cost price of PLA and ABS (per kg, USD):

PETG is a new favorite in the 3D printing industry. It has the advantages of ABS and PLA, high durability, and few warping problems. Its various advantages have attracted people's great interest in it. The only disadvantage is that it is a bit expensive.

Print head temperature: 220°-250°

Printing temperature: 50°-75°

Cooling shrinkage: Need to be considered

Soluble in: None

Hardness: High

Elasticity: Medium

Durability: High

PETG cost price

Nylon plays an important role in the 3D printing industry. Considering its hardness, elasticity and durability, nylon ranks first. Because nylon filaments absorb water, if they are not handled properly, the printing results will be affected (you can dry them at high temperature before printing to remove water). We should keep nylon filaments dry. It is best to use high temperature to remove water and then place them in a dry place.

Print head temperature: 240°-260°

Printing temperature: 70°-100°

Cooling shrinkage: Need to be considered

Soluble in: None

Hardness: High

Elasticity: High

Durability: High

PC material (polycarbonate) can be said to be the hardest material. It is widely used in extreme environment products such as bulletproof glass and diving goggles. PC yarn is water-absorbent, so when storing PC yarn, you must pay attention to the environmental humidity.

Print head temperature: 270°-330°

Printing plate temperature: 90°-110°

Cooling shrinkage: Need to be considered

Soluble in no

Hardness: Very high

Elasticity: Medium

Durability: Very high

TPE material (thermoplastic elastomer) is a very elastic and durable plastic. We can find them in automotive parts, medical supplies, etc. When you want to print items that can be folded or worn, you can consider this material.

Print head temperature: 210°-230°

Bottom plate temperature during printing: 30°-60° (negligible)

Cooling shrinkage: Very small

Soluble in: None

Hardness: Medium

Elasticity: Very high

Durability: Very high

In addition, there are some relatively uncommon but actually quite important materials.

It is actually PLA filament mixed with wood fiber, which makes the printed effect look like it is made of wood. Different wood filaments will be formed according to the type of wood fiber you mix. You should pay attention to the temperature when printing. Too high temperature may cause the wood fiber to burn. So we need to control the temperature appropriately.

The raw material is a mixture of ABS or PLA and metal powder. Although it is a mixture, the finished product still looks like real metal. Most of the mixed metals nowadays are stainless steel, brass, aluminum, etc. After printing, we can process it, such as dark rust, polishing, etc. Most 3D printers support 50% metal and 50% plastic. There are also some good ones that support up to 85% metal printing.

Glow-in-the-dark filament is based on ABS or PLA with some phosphorescent materials added. Under the light, it will start to store energy, and when the environment is dark, it will release photons (energy) and show different colors. Some are green, some are pink or yellow, etc., depending on the properties of the material. The thicker the printed product, the stronger the glow (the thicker the wall, the stronger the glow).

Colour-changing filament

In the 1980s, a piece of clothing was launched that could change color according to your body temperature. Color-changing fibers also change color according to temperature changes. However, they can only change between two colors, such as purple to pink, blue to green, or yellow to green. The main components of color-changing fibers are PLA and ABS plus some mixtures. It can be used to print aesthetic things such as mobile phone cases or toys.

It is an upgraded material of PLA, ABS, PETG and nylon. It is a very light but extremely strong material. It is widely used in fields with extremely high requirements, such as high-end automotive industry, aerospace field, etc.

3D printing materials are varied and varied. Each has its own advantages and disadvantages. When printing, we should choose the best material for the product. For example, the aerospace field needs to use carbon fiber materials for printing, and printing toys requires ABS. New materials are constantly being introduced. I believe that in the future there will be better and more perfect materials used in 3D printing.