Selecting suitable FDM 3D Printing materials with prominent parameters like good strength and cost-effectiveness can be daunting.
Traditional manufacturing processes may not provide enough design flexibility, and even with the limited availability of designs, it takes an unlimited amount of time, which further increases the production cost ( plus labour cost and material waste).
These technological breakpoints gave rise to the new manufacturing – Additive manufacturing process, a.k.a. 3D printing services.
Mechanical performance, visual quality, and process are the three criteria that materials are often assessed along. In this blog, we discuss additional categories to provide a more complete view of the polymer’s features. The material chosen truly relies on what the user wants to print, thus we outlined the important decision factors required to select a material (other than cost and speed)
In this section, we will focus on FDM 3D Printing because it is the most cost-effective way to create a robust prototype. Can I use this for full-scale 3D printing production? Here we recommend using MJF by HP full series production.
Statistics show that in the next 5 years, the Addictive manufacturing process will be 50% cheaper and 400% faster than the traditional manufacturing process. Other recent statistics tell that more than 5 billion dollars have been invested in the Additive manufacturing industry.
Before going into detail about the optimum 3D filaments in the Fused Deposition Modelling or FDM 3D printing process, knowing the answer to this question is important.
All these parameters play an important factor in strength. Since you know this now, Let’s dive into the strong and cost-effective 3D filaments. We deploy Ultimaker FDM professional grade 3D printers to deliver high quality custom parts. See youtube link below and check out how it works.
ABS is a thermoplastic comprised of three monomers-acrylonitrile,butadiene and stryrene. ABS is widely used industries due to its low-cost and superior mechanical properties to this date.
It becomes easier to hold up extra usage and wear because of its good impact, wear resistance, and resilience capacity. Having ABS becomes a good selection for high-temperature applications.
PLA ( polylactic acid ) is a fully biodegradable thermoplastic polymer made up of renewable raw materials. This is the default filament used in the addictive manufacturing process. PLA is one of the most robust and cost-effective filaments available.
At the exact cost, PLA has a better edge over ABS because it has better impact strength, stiffness, and resilience. Only in terms of toughness, ABS is tougher than PLA.
PLA filaments are very easy to print because it has good dimensional accuracy. Also, it has a good shell life.
Whenever the environmental conditions get far stronger, then the only solution is a fusion of polymers. It is no wonder they say “UNITY IS STRENGTH”. Tough PLA is a by-product of the properties of PLA and ABS filaments. So, tough PLA is the best selection for printing functional prototypes and tooling at larger sizes.
Infusing popular 3d filaments (like PETG, Nylon, and polycarbonate) in the base material( such as PLA or ABS) forms carbon fiber filled. This infusing combination makes the fibers extremely strong and increases strength & stiffness.
These filament combinations make carbon fiber filler a little more expensive than the above materials but, Still lie in the cost-efficiency zone.
The traditional manufacturing process still has some benefits like
But additive manufacturing is updating quicker than ever. Also, statistics are very clear in upcoming developments in additive manufacturing processes.
The material described above is primarily used as jigs and fixtures for immediate deployment. Materials like PA12 or PA12GB, PEEK, PEKK, Kevlar, and similar alternatives are recommended for high performance. In addition to strength, these high-performance materials have excellent wear, chemical, and temperature resistance, allowing them to withstand extreme functional conditions.
So, in this current era of technological evolution with an increasing amount of new innovations and products, it demands more customizations and designs. Thus, in these areas, 3D printing services is significant.
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