SABIC Debuts Portfolio of Filaments for FDM and Compounds for Large-Format Additive Manufacturing

SABIC has unveiled a new portfolio of six high-performance filament grades for fused deposition modeling (FDM) and a new family of THERMOCOMP additive manufacturing compounds that addresses the requirements of large-format additive manufacturing (LFAM).

SABIC’s new filaments, designed for use with Stratasys  Fortus printers, are based on the company’s ULTEM polyetherimide (PEI) resin, CYCOLAC acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS) resin and LEXAN polycarbonate (PC) resin, and offer the same composition as the company’s injection molding grades. Manufacturers can use the filaments to produce a range of durable end-use parts, according to the company.

Following are details on the filaments:

• ULTEM AM9085F filament–A PEI product manufactured from ULTEM 9085 resin. This product provides high heat resistance and mechanical strength, is UL94 V-0 compliant at 1.5 and 3.0 mm and meets FAR 25.853 and OSU 65/65 requirements with low FST evolution. It is available in black and natural (unpigmented) colors.

• CYCOLAC AMMG94F filament–This is a general-purpose ABS product manufactured from CYCOLAC MG94 resin. It provides a balance of properties for various applications, and is UL94 HB compliant at 3.0 mm. It is available in black, white and natural (unpigmented) colors.

• LEXAN AM1110F filament–This general-purpose PC product is manufactured from LEXAN HF1110 resin. It provides thermal properties, is UL94 V-2 compliant at 3.0 mm and is available in white.

The nominal diameter of all SABIC’s filament products is 1.79 mm ± 0.05 mm and they are available in a 1510cc spool size.

At RAPID + TCT, SABIC also showed applications printed from its developmental materials that have been designed for FDM. These materials include the following:

• High-impact strength polycarbonate filament for processing and secondary operations
• Polycarbonate and ULTEM healthcare filaments made with SABIC healthcare grade resins
• High-impact strength ULTEM filament
• Flame, smoke and toxicity compliant polycarbonate filament for use in aerospace applications
• EXTEM thermoplastic polyimide filament with heat resistance exceeding that of ULTEM filament
• Breakaway support materials for SABIC’s ULTEM, PC, and ABS filaments

The THERMOCOMP AM compounds for LFAM are reinforced with carbon or glass fibers for added strength. Print parameters and mechanical properties for the materials—developed by SABIC using test specimens printed on the company’s in-house big area additive manufacturing (BAAM) machine—can help customers expedite material selection and optimize processing conditions.

SABIC’s first eight reinforced THERMOCOMP AM compounds are based on four of the company’s amorphous resins:  acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS), polyphenylene ether (PPE), polycarbonate (PC) and polyetherimide (PEI).

According to the company:

• ABS-based compounds provide easy processing, low warpage and good print surface quality, making them good candidate materials for a broad range of applications and tooling, including thermoforming and vacuum forming.
• PPE-based compounds offer lower thermal expansion, outstanding hydrolytic stability, a higher strength-to-weight ratio and higher temperature performance compared to ABS.
• PC-based compounds deliver higher stiffness, higher temperature performance and higher throughput compared to ABS and PPE, as well as excellent ductility and a smooth surface finish.
• PEI-based compounds, developed from SABIC’s inherently flame-retardant ULTEM resins, provide low thermal expansion, high temperature performance, an excellent strength-to-weight ratio, high modulus and low creep.

For more info, visit SABIC.

Sources: Press materials received from the company.