SABIC Launches New Breakaway Support Filament

SABIC, part of the chemical industry, launches the AMS31F filament, the company’s breakaway support material for fused deposition modeling. The new filament maintains rigidity during printing and provides pliability during post-processing to enable easier removal of scaffolding at room temperature, which can help reduce the time required to produce finished parts.

The new AMS31F filament is for use with SABIC’s ULTEM AM9085F filament, a high-performance polyetherimide (PEI) material that provides high heat resistance and mechanical strength, which are optimal properties for potential aerospace applications, as well as for automotive, oil and gas and tooling applications.

“Using structural supports to print parts with complex geometries is essential, but it can also be quite challenging,” says Keith Cox, senior business manager, Additive Manufacturing, SABIC. “By offering a complementary support material for our ULTEM AM9085F filament, SABIC is providing a complete material solution that helps customers save time and effort. Additionally, the ease of support material removal provides part designers greater flexibility in defining print orientation to optimize part performance.” 

SABIC’s new AMS31F filament helps part producers increase their productivity by helping to reduce the time required to remove structural supports. SABIC’s material formulation was developed for use with ULTEM AM9085F filament to balance adhesion during printing with the ability to easily remove the scaffolding during post processing.

Unlike support materials that often require reheating to facilitate removal, SABIC’s AMS31F filament separates at room temperature, reducing post-production time. The filament’s white color provides a  contrast to the amber color of ULTEM filament, which allows operators to more quickly identify the structures to be removed. 

The ease of removing the AMS31F support filament gives the operator greater latitude in defining part orientation that is better suited to optimize printing efficiency and part performance, the company says.

High-performance ULTEM filament is made from SABIC’s ULTEM resin (PEI) technology. It provides high heat resistance and mechanical strength, is UL 94 V-0 compliant at 1.5- and 3.0-mm thicknesses and meets FAR 25.853 and OSU 55/55 requirements with low flame, smoke and toxicity evolution.

ULTEM AM9085F filament offers diameter consistency to help meet customers’ dimensional specifications. SABIC’s filaments are monitored with a laser micrometer to help ensure adherence to stringent specifications for diameter consistency. 

Used together, the new breakaway support filament and ULTEM AM9085F filament are compatible with Stratasys Fortus Classic printers and a variety of open architecture industrial printers. 

Sources: Press materials received from the company and additional information gleaned from the company’s website.