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Sometimes, choosing the most suitable equipment, material or accessory for a given application is a complex decision that depends on a multitude of variables and requirements. To facilitate this selection, on our website you can use different advanced filters to identify those that meet the necessary properties, in addition to being able to consult all the available technical information in the details of each product.
Below we detail the meaning of different characteristics and properties:
Ability of a material to resist surface wear caused by frictional loads.
Maximum dimensional deviation between replicas of the same part.
Air filtration systems reduce exposure to potentially harmful elements generated during the printing of certain materials. They can include two types of filter elements:
HEPA filters: These are high-efficiency particle filters designed to retain microparticles that may be generated during printing.
Activated carbon filters: These are filters composed of microporous carbon capable of capturing a wide variety of volatile organic compounds.
BPA-free materials (industrial chemical element that, in contact with food, is toxic to people) and that has passed all official certifications, being approved as valid material for direct contact with food by the FDA (Food and Drug Administration). It is important to differentiate the certification of the material itself from the certification of the printing process, for which certain guidelines should be taken.
Average diameter or range of diameters of the particles that make up the powdered material.
The base of a 3D printer is the surface on which the parts are built. There are multiple types of bases, the most common being flexible, rigid and glass bases. The main advantage of flexible bases is that they allow parts to be released easily and quickly, making them suitable for most applications. Rigid bases are generally used in printing technical materials that have a high contraction upon cooling and which, in some cases, can cause deformation of the flexible bases. Glass bases have excellent flatness, which is why it is common to use them in printers that do not have self-leveling systems.
Materials that can be broken down into chemical elements by the action of biological agents such as the sun, water, bacteria, plants or animals. Biodegradable plastic materials are designed so that, by the action of living organisms, they are used as a source of carbon and therefore the plastic material is consumed. Nowadays, to produce biodegradable plastics, starch is used as raw material, which is a natural polymer obtained from corn, wheat or potatoes.
It is the property of a material to resist impregnation, erosion or corrosion caused by chemical substances such as acids, bases or solvents. A chemically resistant polymer may be exposed to harsh environmental conditions without surface treatments. Inadequate chemical resistance will cause the material to decrease the mechanical properties and functionality of the final piece.
Possibility of using open parameters to use materials from other manufacturers than the printer.
Temperature at which the part must be cured to achieve maximum mechanical properties.
Ratio between the mass and volume of the material.
Materials designed to be detected by any type of magnetic detector, even when the material is present in very small particles. The materials that meet this property are used in a multitude of sectors, such as in the food industries to ensure that in case of detachment of pieces of these materials, they are detected.
The drag type is the system that the extruder uses to pull the filament. In simple drag, the filament is pulled only by a toothed wheel that presses it against a bearing. In double drag, the filament is pulled by two toothed wheels that work in solidarity, providing better grip and a lower risk of slipping.
An elastic material is one that, after suffering a stress that causes deformations in it, is capable of recovering its initial shape when these external forces are eliminated. It is often common to confuse this property with flexibility, which is simply the ability of a material to change its shape without breaking. Therefore, an elastic material is one that, if deformed, can recover its initial shape.
Materials with low capacity to conduct electricity. The behavior of the electrical insulating materials is due to the potential barrier that is established between the valence and conduction bands that makes the existence of free electrons capable of conducting electricity through the material difficult.
Material with a low resistivity, which allows the conduction of currents in the presence of an electric field, with very low or no potential losses.
Increase in length that the specimen has undergone in a standardized tensile test. It can be considered as the ratio between the increase in length of a specimen after tensile failure and its initial length. Elongation at break, along with necking, are measures of the ductility of the material. Therefore, it indicates the ability to deform before breaking occurs.
Sensor in charge of detecting the presence of filament in the printer.
ESD materials are those with a low surface electrical resistance, allowing electrostatic charges to be dissipated. They are suitable materials for manufacturing housings or frames for electronic or communication devices that are susceptible to damage from electrostatic discharge.
The extrusion system of a 3D printer is the way the hotend/extruder assembly is configured.
Direct extrusion system: In the direct extrusion system, the hotend and the extruder are joined together forming the print head. This provides greater extrusion control, at the cost of greater moving head weight. It is the recommended configuration for all types of materials.
Bowden extrusion system: In the Bowden extrusion system, the extruder remains fixed in the printer chassis and is attached to the hotend using a flexible PTFE tube. Using this scheme, a lower weight of the head is achieved, at the cost of losing extrusion control. It is only suitable for rigid materials.
Material fatigue is the phenomenon by which a part breaks under cyclic dynamic loads. Normally, this failure occurs with dynamic loads much lower than those necessary with static loads. The fatigue failure process develops from the beginning of the crack and continues with its propagation and final failure. Therefore, fatigue resistance is the ability of a material to resist fatigue loads over a number of loading cycles.
Certificate granted by the US government that guarantees the safety of the material or device for certain sanitary or food applications.
Material composed of two phases: A continuous plastic matrix and a phase of a second material, usually inorganic, in the form of a fibre. They have intermediate properties between the two materials.
Nominal diameter of the filament section. Two standards are currently used: 1.75 mm and 2.85 mm diameter. Compatibility with one or the other diameter depends on the design of the printer and, as a general rule, they are not interchangeable.
The finishing effect of a filament are those properties that, together with the color, define the final appearance of the piece. There are different effects such as glossy or matte, related to the ability to reflect light; iridescence that varies the tone depending on the angle of incidence of the light; bicolor and color change, which varies the tone in different areas of the piece; or the silk effect that provides finishes similar to metal; among others.
Material with a low ability to burn in the presence of a flame and a high ability to extinguish itself in the event of a flame.
Software that controls the printer. Depending on the type, certain functions and gcode commands may vary.
A scale defining the ability of a material to burn in the presence of a flame and its ability to self-extinguish in the absence of a flame.
The ability of a material to withstand bending loads without permanent deformation. After removal of the load, the material returns to its original state.
It is a characteristic parameter of each material and represents the linear relationship between stress and unit strain within the elastic behaviour zone of a material subjected to bending stress. It represents its flexibility, i.e. the ability to deform non-permanently under load. It is determined by standard mechanical bending test.
The maximum load that a material withstands just before the point of rupture when subjected to a bending moment. It is determined by standard mechanical bending test.
High flow hotends are those capable of melting a greater volumetric flow rate efficiently, compared to conventional hotends. This allows higher printing speeds to be used.
Resins that allow parts to be manufactured with working temperatures above 100 ºC. Some resins may require post-print heat treatments for optimal performance.
Traction tension adjustment is the ability of an extruder to adjust the pressure exerted by the traction wheel or wheels on the filament. Extruders with tension adjustment allow the tension to be optimized for each material, allowing flexible materials to be used more reliably.
It is one of the most important mechanical properties of a polymer. It is considered as the resistance to fracture due to the impact of a certain load, taking into account that the impact resistance is related to the temperature and the load applied to the polymer during the impact. The commonly used impact tests are Izod (ASTM D256) and Charpy (ASTM D256) with or without notched. As each manufacturer carries out a different test, and in order to facilitate the search and selection of the appropriate material, we have unified the values to the Charpy test with notch, assuming that in such conversion between tests there may be some deviation. Therefore, the impact resistance value shown in the search engine should be considered an estimate. If you need the exact value, you should refer to the material's technical sheet provided by the manufacturer and available on our website.
Gas control system in the printing chamber. It allows the oxygen inside the printer to be replaced with an inert gas in order to prevent oxidation of the material.
Camera integrated in the 3D printer that allows remote monitoring of the prints.
Possibility to connect the printer to a wired network via Ethernet connection.
There are multiple types of lasers depending on their operation (CO2, diode,...), and the wavelength used. The type of laser used determines, in many cases, the compatible materials.
Thickness of the manufacturing layers. Defines the Z-axis resolution of the part.
Distance the Z-platform is raised after each exposure to allow for part separation and resin entry between the last layer and the FEP film.
The light source of a structured light scanner is the one used to project the scan pattern onto the surface of the object. NIR sources are best suited for scanning in all types of lighting conditions but can be problematic with some colors and materials. Visible light sources are compatible with all types of materials, but may require controlled ambient lighting conditions.
Material that can be processed by classical machining processes such as drilling, grinding, milling, etc.
Minimum amount of new material that must be added to the used powder after each printing in order for it to be reused while ensuring minimum quality standards. It is expressed as a percentage of the final mix.
Maximum temperature that the printing platform can reach continuously and stably.
Maximum temperature that the inside of the printer can reach continuously and stably.
Maximum temperature that the hotend can reach continuously and stably.
Maximum printhead travel speed supported by the printer.
Maximum usable manufacturing volume.
MDT materials are those capable of being detected by magnetic detectors. The fact that a material is magnetodetectable does not imply that the material is magnetic or behaves like a magnet.
Certain materials are manufactured specifically for medical applications. There are different degrees of certification, although the most common is the biocompatibility compliance of USP Class VI or ISO 10993-1, which guarantees the biocompatibility of topical use of up to 30 days in contact with the human body.
Ratio of filler metal powder to matrix. It may be expressed by volumetric or mass ratio.
Hygroscopicity is the ability of materials to absorb atmospheric moisture. Therefore, a material with moisture resistance will be considered a material that can be exposed to environments with high presence of moisture or in contact with water, without losing its properties.
System that allows for programmed automatic changes during the printing process, allowing multiple compatible colors or materials to be used simultaneously with a single extruder.
Printers with two or more extruders that allow the use of two or more materials or colours.
Sensor in charge of detecting clogging or extrusion problems.
Number of independent extruders that the 3D printer has.
Recommended temperature to be set at the manufacturing base during the printing of a material to improve its adhesion.
Recommended temperature at which a material should be extruded. It is usually given in the form of a range, where lower values provide better finish and accuracy, while higher values provide better inter-layer adhesion and printing speed. As a general rule, the middle value of the range is taken as the standard value.
Standard reference code of a colour based on a RAL® or Pantone® palette respectively.
Recycled filaments are those that have been made, totally or partially, using recycled plastic.
Sensor in charge of measuring the amount of resin in the tank.
Minimum distance between points in the point cloud.
Ability of a material to prevent external particles (mainly liquid or gaseous fluids) from entering the interior of a piece. In 3D printing FDM (non-isotropic pieces), to achieve a watertight part, the printing parameters must also be considered, since the correct union between layers is totally linked with the final tightness of the piece (apart from the fact that the material possesses said property ).
System by which the printer makes a flatness map of the base and tries to compensate for defects or small levelling errors.
Temperature from which a plastic material begins to lose stiffness. There are multiple variants with respect to this term depending on the standard or the test applied, such as "glass transition temperature", "vicat temperature" or "HDT". Although there are certain variations between different temperatures, we consider the term "softening temperature" globally to facilitate analysis and comparison between materials. If you need to know the exact value and the test performed, you should always consult the technical data sheet of the product provided by the manufacturer and available in the file of each product on our website.
Resins suitable for molds are those whose high rigidity and resistance to high temperatures allow their use in the production of molds for small volume plastic injection systems.
The electrical resistance to leakage current on the surface of a material.
It is the opposition that offers a material to suffer physical alterations by penetration, abrasion or scratching. Thus, the hardness represents the resistance of the material to the plastic deformation located on its surface. There are many test methods to determine the hardness using a durometer with penetration of an identator. Depending on the type of tip used and the range of loads applied, there are many scales for the different hardness ranges. Scales such as Rockwel (E, M or R) are often used for the hardest materials and Shore (A or D) for the softest elastomers and plastics. Therefore, and considering that conversion between different scales is not recommended, we have simplified the different scales on a single scale 1-10 (F2P scale), where materials with hardness 1 are the softest and materials with hardness 10 the most hard, in order to facilitate the comparison and selection of materials. In case you need the exact value of each material, you should always go to the technical sheet of the material provided by the manufacturer, where the test and scale are specified.
Hardness equivalence table:
Sustainable powders are those made from renewable sources such as vegetable oils or starches.
The laser scanning system of an SLS 3D printer is the technology it uses to project the laser onto the surface of the powder. There are mainly two technologies:
Cartesian system: The laser is mounted on a gantry with Cartesian movement. It is a slower system, but more economical.
Galvo system: The laser head remains fixed, and the laser beam is projected using a moving mirror. It is the fastest and most accurate system.
Also known as Young's modulus of elasticity or modulus of elasticity. It is a characteristic parameter of each material and represents the linear relationship between stress and unit strain within the elastic behaviour zone of a material subjected to tensile stress. It represents its elasticity, i.e. the ability to deform non-permanently under load. It is determined by standardised tensile testing.
Maximum tensile stress that a piece can withstand before breaking, and corresponds to the highest applied stress in a stress / strain curve.
Stress/strain diagram:
The stress–strain curve is divided into three regions:
1. Strain elastic region: The material always returns to its original form without suffering permanent damage when the tension is released.
2. Strain hardening region: The material cannot recover completely when the tension is released due to permanent changes in the microstructure.
3. Necking region: The material fails after going through the plastic deformation. Materials that are fragile fail immediately after elastic deformation.
The texture camera is an additional camera available in some structured light scanners that allows you to capture, in addition to the geometry, the color and texture of objects, allowing you to obtain realistic digital models suitable for marketing applications, infographics, etc.
A material's ability to conduct heat. Low conductivity values imply high thermal insulation capacity, while high values imply high heat dissipation capacity.
Material that lets in the light but does not reveal, but confusingly, what is behind, so it does not offer a clear image. It represents a percentage of transparency without ever reaching 100%, in that case it would be transparent. In 3D printing, due to layer-to-layer printing, it is impossible to achieve transparency, because the lines of union between layers distort the angle of incidence of the light in the piece (on the contrary, for example, that in a glass, where the composition is completely uniform). There are materials for 3D printing that reach percentages close to transparency, but never the same, but a high translucided.
Optical property of a material that defines the ability of a material to transmit light and images without distortion. The greater the transparency, the clearer the image seen through the material.
Reference markers are elements, generally adhesive or magnetic, that are placed on the surface of parts to improve the tracking and alignment of captures during the 3D scanning process using structured light.
It is the resistance of a material to ultraviolet rays, which mainly affect parts exposed outdoors to harsh weather conditions (among which, the main deteriorating agent is UV rays). Intrinsically resistant materials to UV radiation will not show yellowing or discoloration of the pieces, nor cracks that cause a reduction in their resistance.
Vibration is the propagation of elastic waves that produce stresses and deformations on a piece. That is, the resistance to a repetitive stress that tends to cause deformations in the pieces can be considered. Therefore, a 3D printed part with resistance to vibrations will be able to withstand cyclic stresses of this type.
Input voltage of the electrical components of the hotend. Mainly affects fans and heater.
A resistência eléctrica à corrente de fuga através de um material.
Resins that can be washed with both water and alcohol.
Possibility to connect the printer to WiFi networks.
Optimum distance to be maintained between the surface to be scanned and the scanner during the scanning process.
The positioning resolution in XY is the minimum distance that the head can move in each movement in the X and Y axes.
The Z positioning resolution is the minimum distance the build platform can move in each Z move.