Guys,
It’s been some time since I last posted. I am looking for a recommendation for a material that will see repeated and prolonged exposure to temperatures up to 80C and UV light. The material will be used for bracket-type purposes, so there is no aesthetic concern, just needs to be tough and stable in the above mentioned conditions.
We have a From 2 printer. Anybody have any recommendations for a suitable material?
I may be wrong, but I don’t believe 80ºC is a big deal for plastics. As for the UV exposure, I would spray paint it.
Unfortunately, @nsayer, you are not correct in this regard. Toughness and temperature resistance seem to be two things that can’t be had together when it comes to resin printing (at least with Formlabs resins) - as can be seen in the material’s TDS. For example, Tough and Durable both have a HDT below 50°C…
Actually, what I would recommend is to get a cheap FDM printer, print the part in PETG and paint it with some UV resistant paint. Or go for a printer that can print in ASA, if you plan on printing such parts more often.
@P3D @nsayer Thank you for your recommendations. I wonder why there is not a materials category in this forum? Strange. Is there a Formlabs materials guru in this forum?
Formlabs does have a ‘High Temp’ material, with an HDT well above 80C. It’s suitability for your application depends on what your bracket will be doing at 80C in UV light. In other words, how tough is tough, for your application?
High Temp resin is brittle, especially at lower temperatures, so it might not be right for you if you need these brackets to hold up steel shelves that you toss other steel parts onto at room temperature.
@Ike Thank you for the recommendation. I had been eyeing high temp but knew that it was not designed to be tough necessarily. If this is the best resin for 80C, I’ll get some and test it. I’m considering using this material for retainer brackets that will see occasional light load. I suspect thin walls will be too brittle, but I can design that out by increasing thickness.
I’ll get some and do some experimentation and testing. I’ll report back with my results.
I’d imagine you guys already have this on your wish list, but a polycarbonate-like resin would be incredible.
Not to necessarily delay your resin purchase, but you might want to request a High Temp sample part so you can see how it feels to handle, and how it behaves in your heated environment with some impact or simulated load.
https://formlabs.com/request-sample-part/?part=high-temp-attachment
On the bright side, the decrease in stiffness, or heat-softening, that leads to slumping and deflection at high temperatures, also corresponds to an increase in toughness and resilience at those temperatures.
Rigid and Grey Pro resins also have higher heat deflection temperatures than our other resins, but not above 80C like High Temp. Also, High Temp will be about as brittle as it can get after you finish post-curing it, but you may want to consider giving your parts a coat of automotive spray enamel or something to block further embrittlement from the UV you mentioned.
I can’t speak to whether a polycarbonate-like resin will be possible in the future or not, but it would at least be closer to our current range of properties than a mythical PEEK or Ultem-like resins some users hope for.