PolySonic PLA - High speed PLA

PolySonic is one of Polymaker's filament lines aimed at providing FDM 3D printing with materials that can match the performance of ultrafast 3D printers and help them reach their full potential. The PolySonic filaments answer this need with ultrafast extrusion rates, supreme precision and great layer adhesion. One of the filaments from the PolySonic family is the PolySonic PLA, an easy to print PLA with a wider extrusion window and improved flow rates.

Video 1: The PolySonic PLA filament by Polymaker. Source: Polymaker.

The three key advantages of using the PolySonic PLA filament are:

1. Consistent surface quality at high extrusion speeds without underextrusion, holes, artifacts, layers with different thicknesses, or the so-called "shark skin phenomenon" (when surface finish varies from glossy to matte due to the extrusion temperature being the same despite higher printing speeds). With Polysonic PLA, it is possible to extrude at higher temperatures (210-230 ºC) in comparison with standard PLA (190-210 ºC), and with flow rates up to 30 % higher than with standard PLA within the same temperature ranges.
   
   

   

   Image 1: The flow rate increase of the PolySonic PLA filament in comparison with standard PLA. Source: Polymaker.

   Furthermore, thanks to the PolySonic PLA's updated rheology, its transition from fluid to solid occurs with almost zero shrinking, resulting in sharp corners, fine details and steep overhangs even at high flow rates. This optimization has proven to increase production efficiency by up to 150 %.
   
   
2. Thanks to the perfected cooling-melting rate, the PolySonic PLA will produce parts with consistent mechanical properties even at printing speeds of 100-300 mm/s. When standard PLA is extruded at higher printing speeds than usual, the parts suffers a 24 % drop in mechanical properties. PolySonic PLA, on the other hand, shows only a 6 % drop in mechanical properties from 50-100 mm/s printing speeds to 100-300 mm/s speeds.
   
   

   

   Image 2: The mechanical properties comparison of the PolySonic PLA filament and standard PLA. Source: Polymaker.

3. The result of these optimizations is a higher throughput since it is possible to 3D print parts with the same surface and mechanical quality much faster. 

Even though PolySonic PLA was designed for very fast printing speeds, it is also possible to use standard PLA printing speeds of 50-100 mm/s as opposed to the 100-300 mm/s maximum printing speed for this filament. For the standard printing speeds the extrusion temperature range is 190-210 ºC and at printing speeds of 100-300 mm/s the PolySonic PLA can be extruded at 210-230 ºC. This wide range of available printing temperatures and speeds makes the PolySonic PLA filament a very versatile material that will give great results in both standard 3D printing contexts as well as high-speed printing applications.

Image 3: Parts 3D printed with the PolySonic PLA filament. Source: Polymaker.

The packaging in which Polymaker presents its filaments is highly studied and carefully designed to preserve the quality and condition of its filaments. In this case, PolySonic PLA is presented inside a vacuum-sealed bag together with a desiccant sachet to prevent the filament from getting wet. This bag is self-sealing, so once the filament has been used, it can be put back into the bag. In addition, all of this is enclosed in a high quality printed box, to avoid knocks and breakages during shipping.

Polymaker's PolySonic PLA is an ideal material for the ultrafast additive manufacturing of functional prototypes or end-use products that need an excellent surface finish and consistent mechanical properties regardless of the printing speed.

For a high-speed PLA with increased toughness, an ABS-like impact strength, and flexural strength superior to that of ASA and PETG, see the PolySonic PLA Pro filament by Polymaker.