So far, the production of silicone parts has always been made possible via conventional manufacturing processes such as injection molding, casting and compression molding; processes that remain expensive given the high cost of molds. With the recent developments in the field of material science, scientists have been able to explore the use of silicone as a 3D Printing material. Manufacturers have gone beyond these possibilities and have explored the development of silicone 3D printers. So, 3D Printing silicone is now possible and given the nascent interest of industrials in this technology, it is time to dive into it and discover how, why and where this technology can be leveraged.
As this segment is still nascent, there is not yet a great number of players that specialize in the field. ACEO®, German RepRap and Spectroplast AG are part of this exhaustive list and we have invited them to share their expertise in this dossier.
ACEO® is a registered trademark of Wacker Chemie, a worldwide operating company in the chemical industry. ACEO® provides 3D printing with silicone elastomers that are comparable to liquid silicone rubbers that are used for injection molding. According to ACEO®, its technology achieves the same high-performance material properties usually found in conventional manufacturing processes. Egbert Klaassen, Global Marketing Director of ACEO® will speak on behalf of the company in this article.
German RepRap is a Germany-based manufacturer of 3D printing solutions based on the RepRap technology (Fused Filament Fabrication). The company also provides 3D scanners, filament, software and accessories. Lena Wietfeld, Head of Marketing, has been able to reply to our questions for this dossier.
Spectroplast AG is a spinoff from the university ETH Zurich that specializes in Silicone additive manufacturing service leveraging 3D biocompatible and high precision silicone material. The service provider has just completed a €1.38 million seed funding round led by the Munich-based investor AM Ventures to develop its services. Petar Stefanov, co – founder & CTO, shared their expertise in the field as part of this topic.
Silicone, an “interesting” material
Interestingly, the interest in silicone as a 3D printing material is due to its material properties. However, it turns out that these same properties are also the reason why the material has never been considered as a viable option. So, what are these properties? And above all, what happened?
Silicone is a polymer that integrates repeating chains of silicon and oxygen. These polymers comprise synthetic compounds inert in nature such as siloxanes, which are made up of atoms of silicon and oxygen with carbon and hydrogen.
As mentioned earlier, the production of silicone parts was mostly achieved through conventional manufacturing processes. Indeed, it is not possible to melt silicone, as we know it, by exposing it to heat and then 3D print a part layer by layer like it is with plastics or metals. With the advancement in material science, researchers have been able to develop some exciting solutions compatible with 3D Printing.
These synthetic compounds deliver to the Silicone material semi-organic behaviour and specific properties such as biocompatibility (ideal for medical applications), chemical stability and resistance to natural ageing; thermal stability (from - 80 to + 300 °C); an ability to withstand fire without releasing toxic and irritating fumes, electrical insulation, elasticity and transparency.