Arkema presents its various materials for “additive manufacturing” and molding technologies at the EuroMold trade show

A world leader in high performance polymers, Arkema now offers a diverse range of materials for the manufacture of prototypes and functional technical short runs, using the laser sintering technology, the 3D printing/UV curing process, or molding for high-tech parts. Arkema will showcase its product range at the 19th edition of EuroMold, the global trade show for Moldmaking and Tooling, Design and Product Development, held in Frankfurt from November 27th to 30th.

Laser sintering (LS) is an additive manufacturing technique that uses a laser beam to produce 3D parts by fusing together thermoplastic powders layer by layer. Arkema offers a comprehensive range of fine powders for this technology:
- Orgasol® Invent Smooth, a polyamide 12 powder imparting unrivaled touch requiring no post-treatment to parts produced by LS, and allowing an unmatched recyclability rate in this process.
- Rilsan® Invent Natural, a polyamide 11 fine powder, 100% sourced from a renewable raw material, specially developed for the LS process, and suitable for use on all types of LS machines. Rilsan® Invent Natural ensures excellent resolution in the detail of the parts, combined with straightforward machine processing, and excellent mechanical properties.
- Rilsan® Invent Black, a polyamide 11 powder featuring the same properties as Rilsan® Invent Natural, used to produce intense black parts.

The 3D printing – UV curing process consists in printing and instantly drying through UV radiation successive layers of a liquid formulation made from acrylic resins, Sartomer, an Arkema subsidiary, is one of the world’s leading producers of acrylic resins for UV curing, and offers new solvent-free solutions adapted to the cutting-edge technology of rapid prototyping or 3D printing - UV curing. In addition to offering great freedom of design, this acrylate resin 3D printing – UV curing technology produces top quality finish.

From aerospace to electronics to automotive, companies around the world increasingly use LS or 3D printing – UV curing to speed up design, development, and market introduction of new products. Parts manufactured by these techniques can be unique functional prototypes, such as custom-made hearing aids, or components for commercial productions.

PEKK is an ultra high performance polymer: it offers a number of properties that place it at the top of what is accessible among thermoplastics in terms of mechanical strength, temperature stability, flame retardancy, and chemical resistance in particular. It is also a unique product in the polyaryletherketone (PAEK) family through it great processing versatility. In fact it can be used in a very wide range of melt processes, from natural granules or granules with fillers, or powders: injection molding, extrusion of pipes, sheets, films, rods and plates, calendering and thermoforming, welding, coating, sintering, impregnation of fibers, composites.

Thanks to these characteristics, it significantly extends the scope of possibilities whenever the following specifications are required: metal substitution, weight reduction, mechanical performance, corrosion resistance, simpler design or manufacture of parts and sub-assemblies in high-tech sectors: aerospace, oil prospection and production, and industrial equipment and machinery.

Source: Arkema