3D printing materials offer improved print quality

28th September 2016

Verbatim

Daisy Stapley-Bunten

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Verbatim, which is part of the Mitsubishi Chemical Holdings Group, announces two new filament materials – PET and high performance PLA - for use with widely available Fused Fabrication Filament (FFF) 3D printers and offering improved versatility, transparency and print quality. Manufactured in Japan, the highly advanced materials will expand the company’s range of 3D printing options available to product designers, design engineers, manufacturers, hobbyists and more.

The new PET and high performance PLA filaments will be demonstrated in public for the first time on the Verbatim’s stand (Stand H12) at the TCT Show in Birmingham NEC, UK, held between 28^th-29^th September. The new filaments complement the company’s existing portfolio of top grade ABS, PLA and ultra flexible PRIMALLOY (TPE) filaments. Also on display will be two other filaments that are soon to be launched: BVOH, a water-soluble support material; and PP (Polypropylene), a commonly used tough and flexible plastic.

PLA is a very popular choice in the 3D printing community given its low toxicity and better eco-friendly credentials compared to petroleum-based plastics. However, PLA sometimes has problems with warping and brittling, but the new high performance PLA material from Verbatim includes special additives from Mitsubishi that virtually eradicate these issues and offers longer life. In addition, the unique mix is soft enough to allow 3D printed objects made from Verbatim’s high performance PLA to be sandpapered for a smooth finish, a key feature when producing 3D objects for display purposes.

The new Verbatim PET filament is a stable yet lightweight plastic already popularly used for packaging bottled drinks, for which demand is growing in the 3D printing industry because of its ease of use, sturdiness (with a tensile strength of 70Mpa) and high level of transparency (optical transmittance 90%). Users will find the printed objects will be relatively smooth, with a ribbon-like texture and an attractive transparent, sparkly appearance.

“Manufactured in Japan with high quality materials and tight industry standards, the new materials we have introduced use highly evolved and proprietary manufacturing processes to yield the best possible 3D printing results. Consistency is key and Verbatim’s new 3D printing filaments offer consistent quality from spool to spool. The new products also benefit from better tolerances and will extrude effortlessly without risk of jamming or clogging in the printer,” explains Rüdiger Theobald, Marketing Director, Verbatim EMEA.

Verbatim’s new filaments are compatible with nearly all 3D printers, including Ultimaker, Massportal, MakerBot, Leapfrog, RepRap derivatives and those from Aye Aye Labs, Builder, iMaker, PrintrBot, and many others.