Thermoplastic amide (elastomer) powder for industrial 3D printing

TPA stands for ThermoPlastic Amides that consists of polyamide 12 segments and softening segments and is characterized by rubber-like properties and outstanding impact strength and thus excellent rebound behavior.  These elastomer materials  are becoming increasingly popular in industrial 3D printing as they are known for their flexibility, durability, and resistance to wear and tear. They are ideal for creating parts and components that need to withstand repeated use and exposure to harsh environments.

Elastomer-based 3D printing applications play a crucial role of the additive value proposition. Mostly like limited editions of infinite designs or high customization they perfectly showcase what 3D printing stands for.

INFINAM® TPA powder from Evonik is a flexible, lightweight-construction material distinguished by its very low density of 1.01 g/cm³ and a Shore A hardness of 91. The high-performance powder is excellently suited for production of functional high-tech 3D plastic parts—prototypes as well as series products—that call for high extensibility and energy return, such as sports equipment or automobile components.

3D printed parts from INFINAM® TPA show an excellent surface resolution and feature detail while exhibiting outstanding durability over a wide temperature range from -40°C to 90°C. The powder is also ideally suited for manufacturing of functional 3D high-tech plastic parts – for prototypes as well as series products. Furthermore, TPA has been used for decades as material of choice for a variety of consumer goods applications like footwear.   

The new ready-to-use powder material meets all the processability criteria required for optimized, production-grade parts developed for HP’s Multi Jet Fusion™ technology. The powder enables fast, high-quality parts to be produced using HP’s Jet Fusion 4200 series of 3D printers, resulting in an efficient, reliable experience similar to that of HP’s branded PA12 polyamide.

Recently, Evonik also introduced with INFINAM® TPA 4006 P a new powder grade that is especially optimized for all types of open source SLS 3D printing machines. This new 3D printing elastomer features high process stability and excellent powder flow properties making it perfectly suitable for all types of SLS technologies available on the market today. Furthermore, the new fine powder can be manufactured with reusability rates of 50/50 virgin vs. used material.    

• Elastomeric properties (rubber-like)
• Easy-to-process
• Low density/lightweight
• Good chemical resistance
• High process stability
• Excellent surface resolution and feature detail

Evonik’s range of elastomeric 3D printing materials includes two types of powders for powder bed fusion 3D printing technologies:

• thermoplastic amide INFINAM® TPA
• thermoplastic copolyester INFINAM® TPC

INFINAM® FL, a rubber-like photopolymer resin for photo-curing 3D printing completes the current portfolio of elastomeric materials for industrial 3D printing.

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