

The Slate PLA filament is manufactured by Francofil, a French company founded in 2017 and specialized in highly innovative technical materials for FFF 3D printing. The Francofil portfolio contains filaments based on biocomposite materials such as cereal, coffee or shellfish shells. The Slate PLA was made of revalued waste from closed slate quarries of Angers. Francofil guarantees that the Slate PLA filament is free of endocrine disruptors.
PLA (polylactic acid) is the second most produced bioplastic and the most commonly used plastic in 3D printing. It is a biodegradable thermoplastic monomer with a unique origin. PLA is derived from renewable organic sources such as corn starch, sugar cane, sugar beet pulp or potato starch. PLA is very easy to 3D print thanks to its high surface energy. It can also be polished, painted or annealed to become less brittle.
The Francofil Slate PLA filament can be printed on most open material FDM 3D printers. The Slate PLA contains slate particles smaller than 250 µm in order not to cause excessive wear of standard nozzles. It should also be kept in mind that filament color may be slightly different from batch to batch with the Francofil Slate PLA filament due to the hue nuance of the waste slate used.
General information |
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Material | PLA |
Format | 0.05 / 0.75 kg |
Density | 1.24 g/cm³ |
Filament diameter | 1.75 / 2.85 mm |
Filament tolerance | - mm |
Filament length | (Ø 1.75 mm - 0.05 Kg) ±16.8 m / (Ø 2.85 mm - 0.05 Kg) ±6.3 m / (Ø 1.75 mm - 0.75 Kg) ±251.5 m / (Ø 2.85 mm - 0.75 Kg) ±94.8 m |
Printing properties |
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Printing temperature | 205 ºC |
Print bed temperature | 60 ºC |
Chamber temperature | - |
Cooling fan | - |
Recommended printing speed | 50 mm/s |
Mechanical properties |
|
Elongation at break | (ISO 527) 2.3 % |
Tensile strength | (ISO 527) 35 MPa |
Tensile modulus | (ISO 527) 1654 MPa |
Flexural strength | (ISO 178) 11 MPa |
Flexural modulus | (ISO 178) 785 MPa |
Surface hardness | - |
Impact strength | 4.65 KJ/m² |
Thermal properties |
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Melting temperature | (ISO 11357) 146 ºC |
Softening temperature | - ºC |
Other |
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HS Code | 3916.9 |
Spool diameter (outer) | - mm |
Spool diameter (inner hole) | - mm |
Spool width | - mm |
In order to ensure smooth extrusion and optimal quality of the 3D printed parts, the Francofil Slate PLA filament should be stored properly in order to avoid moisture absorption. Before and after printing, the spool should be kept in its original packaging or in a vacuum sealed bag with a filament drying capsule for even better results. An intelligent filament container such as the PrintDry container is also a great solution. During printing, the spool can be kept in a drying case, for example the Fiber Three drying case.
The recommended printing parameters for the Francofil Slate PLA filament are 190-230 ºC (best 205 ºC) and a printing speed of 30-100 mm/s (recommended 50 mm/s). A heated bed is not necessary. In order to boost adhesion of the part to the printing bed 3DLac Stick or Magigoo can be used.
Even though the Francofil Slate PLA was designed not to be abrasive, it is still recommended to use a 0.6 mm hardened steel nozzle in case of prolonged and recurring prints with the Francofil Slate PLA filament.