Whereas 3D printers using the same technology and marketed for about the same price usually do not vary much(theoretically) in terms of print quality, the results of post-processing can vary greatly depending on your expertise and skills. Simply put, you take either 100 percent blame or credit for your finished 3D prints.

So, what processes are involved in post-processing?

•Cleaning

In FDM, cleaning usually means to remove support structures from the object.

As we know, there are two types of support material: soluble and insoluble. Insoluble material is relatively strong and can only be removed with a spatula,knife or sheer brute force,leaving the model and print platform vulnerable from possible damage.

If you are lucky enough to own a dual extrusion setup, you may want to use soluble material for your supports. Soluble materials such as HIPS and PVA, can be dissolved in water or Limonene.

Check out our previous blog on how set up your 2 extruder 3D printer.

•Fixing

One way to circumvent supports is to have your model printed separately. This means you will have to manually attach together your parts. ABS prints can be welded or glued together using acetone. Here is a tip you should heed: when creating joints or keys for a model, make sure to create joining features large enough for the 3D printer to create them cleanly. Thumb of rule is that features should be larger than 4-5mm in diameter. Glued components should be secured together using rubber bands, and cyanoacrylate glue should be used to spot glue around the connecting areas. If seams are rough or have gaps, bondo or filler can be used to smoothen them.

•Surface finishing

Sanding

Layer lines are the bane of models printed using FDM technology. Carefully sanding the surface of the model with paper should get rid of the lines. This process requires delicate skills and great attention. Start with higher grit to lower as you go. Do not sand in one place for too long as friction-generated heat could melt the material. The downside to manual sanding is inconsistent results, as well as being laborious.

Smoothing

To give the print a glossy finish, chemicals are sometimes used. For example, Acetone and THF are used to smoothen the surfaces of objects printed with PLA and ABS. The problem with this technique is that it can not be controlled: sometimes features are melted off that should remain. On top of that, vapours can be harmful when inhaled.This can be avoided using closed chemical cleaning machines.

•Coloring

Coating and Painting

Surface finishing is often followed by painting. Parts need colouring would ideally be printed using white material. A layer of primer is usually applied before the model is painted,followed by another stage of sanding. Painting is usually done manually using a brush or spray(at an arms length). It is highly recommended that you hang the object in an open, dust-free,well ventilated space. This will allow you to paint all surfaces evenly without having to handle the model while paint is drying. The painted object should be ready to polish after 1-2 days.

Credit: beamler, 3der

Routine check for printer

Prior to your print: make sure to form and follow a routing of checks: whether the nozzle is blocked or broken, or the traps are loose；whether the motor bearing and linear rails are in want of oil, whether the platform is calibrated, clean,and etc. Ensure that a clogged nozzle is fixed; any broken or aging components are replaced in time, lubricating oil are added regularly; and that loosened nuts are tightened.

Inspection during Printing

During Printing: parameter settings should not exceed the recommended range for your printer, otherwise, desired objects would not be printed, and problems such as too high a nozzle/bed temperature or excessive load would damage the machine. Shut down the system when a problem has been detected, and only resume printing after the problem has been fixed. When removing the 3D print, do not use brute force or any object that could damage the print bed.

Double-check after printing

Finally, after printing, repeat step one: remove any sign of dirt on the nozzle, print platform, guide rail, motor, fan, and other parts of the 3D printer so that it does not accumulate over time. Keep your machine and filaments in a dust-free, dry environment. Also, make sure the spools are not tangled.

Bonus tip: Use fewer brands of the 3D printing filament, it will harm 3D printers if we mix lots of brands’ filaments on them. The reason is that printers and filaments from different manufacturers differ to various degrees in their performance and features. For example, filaments you buy from Geeetech are pre-tested on Geeetech’s 3D printers, as a result, they work best with these machines.

I remember being interviewed by Joanna–team lead in our marketing dept.here at Geeetech. At one point during the interview, she asked: what do you know about 3D printers? To convince her i am no stranger to 3D printing,I found myself telling her stories of how 3D printing technology is used to produce parts for aircraft carriers (By then that was everything i had learned about the 3D printers).After i was finished,Joanna didn’t comment on my answer. She merely replied,calmly:3D printing is used in many areas and desktop 3D printers (which,as it turns out, are what Geeetech does) are capable of creating various kinds of objects such as phone cases, chairs and many more…

And ,as you may have guessed, i nailed the interview.:D.    

First day on my new job, i dubbed a video clip in which “Iron Man” and his sidekicks take on their mortal enemy:Thanos and his followers. It took us almost the whole day due to my shyness and awkwardness. But i was genuinely amused by our team’s ingenious ideas and amazed at the fact that 3D printing could be fun too, contrary to what i had pictured it to be.

In the days and weeks that followed,my teammates continued to turn their creativity into reality with the help of Geeetech 3D printers.

Let’s take a look at some of their productions:

Dog Muzzle

Dog muzzles are a controversial topic. Dogs are adorable and usually do not bite.They only bite when feeling threatened.Nevertheless,if your dog has a history of biting, it is advisable that you keep a muzzle at hand in the event of an emergency. Just make sure that the muzzle fits well on your dog. The good news is that you get to design and create one for your dog on your own 3D printer. I mean, who knows better about your dog than you do.

Download STL file here:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1QCmEQtwgBNzrD-hogXnn7DZR1IRZb0ia/view

Chopstick Helper

Do you often find yourself wrestling with your chopsticks while eating Asian food?

Imagine your crush/date is craving some Chao Mian(fried noodles),but you can’t take her or him to that Chinese restaurant,worrying that your lousy chopsticks skills would make you look silly.

This little device may not look classy.It,however,could solve a real problem, and even be a game changer here.  

Download STL file here:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1PK0lxZEVAzxl5rQpDOxz6dzD_4PDXJ6A/view

Cell Phone Stand

A holder to a phone is what a pillow to a human being. Even though this statement is not exactly correct , there is some truth in it. If you are someone who is constantly glued to your smart phone, having a phone stand would relieve some of the pressure on your neck. This robust smart phone holder is crafted to give support to your smart phone whilst you are using it.

Download STL file here:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1dBWhMNP_UWLWdLS2SVjQ1dmKa5EfsS61/view

Tool Holder

The benefits of having a tool holder are numerous and obvious, especially if you are a geek ,maker, or a diy enthusiast, which i believe you are. Having a tool holder 3D printed on your printer will definitely help with your future prints.

Download STL file here:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1JbIPrpXwT1_9fcPRw05Kjcy6eRjbAPLE/view

Grocery Bag Grip

You might be thinking these shopping bag handles are not really that great. But i believe otherwise. The supermarket where i do most of my grocery shopping is about 5 minutes’ walk away from my apartment. And since i only shop 2-3 times a week, every time i buy lots of stuff. And if you consider the vicinity of the supermarket, it does not make much sense to drive or take a ride. So these bag holders would make my shopping experience less painful. I believe delivery guys would find this grip very useful too.

Download STL file here:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1HsvuOOL4PDpdxfW0c55gp2bXtgdf11_f/view

Paintbox

Why would you buy your kid a paintbox when you could 3D print one yourself?  Just imagine your child’s look when you have it 3D printed before his/her eyes.

Download STL file here:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1b7eMJRxqXsT7lIb7A5jhXgcovRPDPI5h/view

Cable Manager

Nowadays it is not uncommon for an individual to own a smart phone, ipad, laptop. Some people even have more than one of these items for various purposes. And each of these gadgets comes with its own electric cable, making maintaining a tidy work desk seemingly impossible.

If you are looking for ways to keep your workplace organized and neat, this 3D printed, low-profile cable management solution could be the one to go for,or at least, give you some inspiration to design and come up with your own solution.

Download STL file here:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Ofw11nMThRJEamUpOpTKbcax89cdUm5W/view

Drawing Tool

Besides being aesthetically pleasing to the eye,these around toys have a practical use: to help with drawing circles.

Download STL file here:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1iMZadCld83DEIlOAVOEKgHVFV34fuhqH/view

Check out the videos below where Joanna tells you more about 3D printing useful gadgets:

Part one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Kf_gSQyHMA&pbjreload=101

Part two: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=99PAm4x0x88

Can you define Artificial Intelligence(AI)?

The word “Artificial Intelligence(AI)” hits the brain. First of all, it is the ability of machines to behave probably like humans.  It is an algorithm with several numbers of code lines. Due to which machines are able to behave, perform, and make decisions like humans. Therefore, it is also called as “Machine learning”.

As the name, here machines made to learn, collect information, analyze it, made to make a decision, and perform the required task on its own ability. So, nowadays there are lots of developments taking place in this field. As a result, we can experience AI in our day to day lives. For example smartphones with face, fingerprint, voice recognition, and smart assistants like Google assistance, Siri on Apple, etc. Similarly, in electronics Alexa by Amazon, Google homes, Google Now.

Finally, today’s topic how the combination of AI and 3D printing going to help additive manufacturing(AM)? Is AI gone help the 3D printing process? If yes then how.

Merge AI and 3D Printing?

What’s the result, combining AI and 3D printing technologies with additive manufacturing. Whenever a new technology is built, it comes with pros and cons of its own. Hence, let’s see the chemistry between AI and 3D printing in brief?. The aim is to see what can be done? How it’s gone to help 3D printing? and finally, its disadvantages.

3D software with AI

Any 3D printing project requires 3D software to complete the print. The software is used for a 3D model, which is CAD software. So, AI will be very useful in modeling the 3D design. In order to get the desirable print. Solidworks recently came up with Solidworks  Xdesign, along with AI. Therefore Autodesk built Dreamcatcher. This software can develop hundreds of designs in a few hours.

AI-based software help to detect errors quickly and easily in real-time. Due to which there will be no loss of time and prevent waste prints.

One of the companies based in London, AI Build developed an automated AI-based 3D printer. The printer with a smart extruder that helps to detect problems. The “AiMaker” is a 3D printer that comes with a robotic end-effector which is attached to industrial robotic-arm. Hence, able to 3D print large objects with great accuracy and high precision. Through its sensors and camera’s collects the data by advanced AI algorithm. Therefore, helps to solve problems and make a decision for achieving the best print quality.

Automatic 3D Printers

By automatic 3D printing workflow, high precision and can have great reproducibility. So, these 2 problems can be overcome by AI, which are the biggest problems of additive manufacturing.

A team from the College of Science from Purdue got support from the National Science Foundation. The team developed a new model building algorithm and computer application for geometric accuracy that will potentially increase the part of printing. The technology quickly helps to print with high precision and accuracy. It even works with different machines and for traditional printing.

Next is an example of an automated 3D printing workflow. 3D printing should undergo several steps, from the creation of a CAD file, undergoing preparation of slicing software, and then final print. AMFG ( Autonomous Manufacturing) a London-based company offers the best solutions for this. At AMFG to automate all the manual tasks such as data collection, cost tracking, planning construction. The software is used to optimize production capacity by machine utilization, planning production orders all of this is improved by AI automatically. Material selection can also be automated, based on the requirements the part to be printed. The software makes a recommendation on the material for the best results.

One more example, a project Artificial Intelligence in 3D printing, Real-time 3D printing control. The author of the project Mr.Reino Iuganson was studying Materials processing technology. For more information on the project Click here.

Therefore, still, there are many steps that require human interventions so the company is also trying to overcome them slowly. Post-processing is one of those steps. So, it is important to automate that step.

The new range of materials and designs

The sequence of AI and 3D printing will bring new material and design that will be helpful for them. The new range may be compatible with the industrial sectors. For Aerospace you always need high-temperature materials. Therefore, one of the best examples of this is led by Prof. Ing. Frank Brückner, Head of the Business Area Generating, the futureAM project launched by the Fraunhofer Institute IWS in 2017. The printing counted at Fraunhofer and AMCD(Additive Manufacturing Center Dresden) for aircraft. ” The engines operate at high temperatures where performing more effectively. As a result, most of the materials won’t fail at temperatures above 1200 degrees.

Some new high-performance materials require fine-tuning of these very complex materials of all process parameters. Finally, AI comes in the picture where data is collected through the sensors of 3D printing. And, then they are analyzed using AI to identify the errors then they are fixed using humans which are not recognizable. The task takes too long to analyze the large data but AI can process it within seconds.

Another example of optimizing the 3D printing process given by a startup Printsyst. The Printsyst is effectively trying to do best with its AI engine. The patented AI algorithm is to identify the functionality of the parts and improve them to provide the best print results. With the previous project experience of successfully integrated additive manufacturing. Through which it can estimate component costs, manufacturing and delivery times. It can also help to improve the quality of the printed product. This increases productivity and reduces error risks.

Finally, there are tons of examples related to the merging of AI and 3D printing. Are you fearing the association between these two?.

Menace of merging AI and 3D printing

Any new technology comes with pros and cons, also with the number of risks. As we know that already in the 3D printed world printed gun and about AI they can overtake the humans. Now think if these 2 are made one what’s the result?. As a result, we know that 3D technology can reproduce many objects. When combined with AI then our privacy and safety could be at great risk. You can learn about Astro dog is the best example. What happens if it goes beyond it?

But on the other, we can see the benefits, after the combination of AI and 3D printing technology. So, people are experimenting with what is possible or not?

Future of combining AI and 3D printing technologies

Finally, we are at the end of the discussion, we know that these 2 technologies are going to play major roles in the upcoming years and that’s not far away. When they are combined, the process will be faster and smarter. The AI algorithms are going to reduce the manual process and repetitive process.

As a result, it is still in its inception stage, think when it can make wonders in its early stages. When it comes to the adult stage it can do thinks that we can’t even imagine. The combination of AI and 3D printing may bring smart innovation, increases productivity, more efficient and bring companies a competitive edge. They can bring a wonderful innovation together and that’s for sure. What do you think?

Make the best of Geeetech 3D printer only @ Geeetech official site

I hope you all enjoyed the 1st episode of 3D Maker Salon by “Andreas Braun” who is well-experienced in 3D printing and worked with them for a quite long period. And also known as Co-owner at Geeetech. So I hope it was great listening to him through his journey in the 3D Printing World, skills, tricks and turns with his experience. If you have missed to watch it then here is the link just click on it and enjoy him speaking. Live streaming link of 1st episode: Click to watch

Here comes 2nd episode of 3D Maker Salon with a new speaker “Jens West”. I already mentioned he is being worked for a long period with 3D printers. He is going to share a lot about the 3D printer filaments and his experience with them isn’t it interesting. Then what are you waiting to mark the date and time on your calendar, complete all your works before he is LIVE? Enjoy listening to him and try them out, let us know was it worth watching.

Live Stream: 8:00 pm-9:00 pm Dec 27 -EU Time
Live link: https://bit.ly/2PlgWC9

Merry Christmas to all and here comes a big surprise from Geeetech for Merry Christmas & New Year. Aren’t you guys excited to know what is your surprise gift. Then let me tell you, come close so that no one should hear it and grab the special gift from you.

There will be a Lucky Draw from the audience who is watching the whole event. The lucky audience will get a New Year Special gifts then what are you waiting to mark the date and time of the Live streaming event on your calendar. Hence, complete all your works before it starts and win exciting gifts.

You can also be a speaker if you’re interested to share your experience, skills or innovations related to 3D printing. Therefore, it is a platform for 3D hobbyists and to encourage them. There is also a surprise gift for the Speaker than there is only one step. That can get you a gift, you just need to fill the form.

?Be the speaker, get one A10T
For more information, please visit: https://bit.ly/2PMYgdA

Now let me thanks the audience for making this event a grand success and help us to provide the knowledge related to 3D printing. In the same way without any hurdle in the upcoming episodes of 3D Maker Salon- Geeetech.

Make the best of Geeetech 3D printer only @ Geeetech official site

The 3D printing technology was found long back ago in the 1980s. But from the past decade it started shining in this competitive world making its benchmark almost in all the fields may it be manufacturing, production, construction, agriculture, clothing, food, packing and labeling, research, pharmaceutical and health care, and so on. Above all is 3D printing for medication gone helps us let’s check it out.

Hence, one of the examples of the pharmaceutical and health care is 3D printing of pills. As a result, in 2015 the 3D printing led another yardstick by manufacturing personalized and precise 3d printed pills. Aprecia Pharmaceuticals developed Zipdose for the first time in the World. We will discuss it in the later part of the blog.

Demand for Personalized and Precise Medication, Why?

Millions of people take medicines or pills on a daily basis. Even if they don’t want to, the body is a must. Some of them take a handful of pills in a day that’s too annoying for a person who is gone a swallow it. In contrast, the person who is taking care of them by providing pills on a timely basis.

Pills or capsules have different shapes, sizes, colors, and tastes. It may be sweet, bitter or sour to taste but in the end, help to cure our diseases, make us feel better and treat us. But in that case, we shouldn’t ignore the problems related to those drugs.

According to PMLive, in its recent article that is “The problem with pills” says that half of the population is suffering from the intake of the pills. Some of them suffer from the side effects due to the intake of pills, some unable to swallow it due to larger in size, some due to its taste that is effecting the whole humankind.

The drugs are manufactured in the conventional methods that make use of standard formal with the proper ratio of chemicals mixed to form a drug which is useful in the mass production but can’t help issues faced by the patients so to overcome all of these there is a demand for 3D printing for medication.

Moto of 3D printed drugs

The 3D printing of pills drove a perception that each individual gets personalized and precise pills with all they need for the betterment of their health. One pill that will have traits of a handful of pills.

To cure any kind of medical mystery of the patients let’s discuss a few of them. In March 2017 the patient name called  Joseph who was only 13 years old go through juvenile arthritis inflammation diagnosed at Alder Hey Children’s Hospital in Liverpool.

He was prescribed tablets that should be taken into many pieces according to his age. Hence breaking the tablet into a number of pieces is very difficult with the amount of ratio mentioned in it. 3D printing and medicine pills help him to overcome the disease and brought a huge smile on his face. To know the complete story of Joseph recover click here.

Another example is from the “Lone Star State” Texas in April 2014 twins Mata born with sharing several organs in common from chest to pelvis. The surgery at Texas Children’s Hospital in Houston, US underwent 26 hours operation to separate the conjoined twin sisters and the real hero is 3D printing that gave new life to both of them. To more about the twin sister here you go.

These are the 2 well-known examples of 3D printing is setting its benchmark in the Pharmaceutical industry. Now let us discuss different technologies used to manufacture 3D printing pills.

3D printed drug technology

The 3D printed technology made a huge advancement in the field of pharma and health care. It reduced the intake of too many tablets in a day, single tablet for the whole day. So that millions of them can be printed on a single printer, and most importantly the chemical variations or distributions can be made in a single 3D printed tablet.

FDM ( Fused Deposition Modelling)

The FDM can produce a load of drugs but the problem with it was the overheated hot melt extrusion temperature that might reduce the API’s ( Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient) of the drug. The 2 pieces of researchers with 2 different mixtures laden on the FDM ( mixtures were domperidone into hydroxypropyl cellulose (HPC) filament and the other is prednisolone could be loaded into PVA filament).

Inkjet Printer

In Inkjet printers, various combinations of ingredients, chemicals or inks are sprayed through the nozzle. Therefore, the layer by layer deposition gives rise to a 3-dimensional tablet.

Stereolithography(SLA)

A team of University College London used SLA for their 3D loaded drug monomer with a photoinitiator to manufacture a resin-based drug. SLA uses a laser beam to photopolymerize monomer.

Selective Laser Sintering(SLS)

For more accelerated and fabricated dosage of drug release, SLS uses laser to combine all the ingredients and copolymers. Hence, they are in a powder state.

Do you want to read more about the technologies then go through these research papers

First 3D printing of Pills

The World’s first 3D printed drug approved by the FDN that is Spritam, which treats Epilepsy that is developed by Aprecia Pharmaceuticals in 2015. They started with Zipdose after the success of it,  developed Spritam and got patent for high-dose medications in crumbled form.

In an interview with Time, the CEO of Aprecia Don Wetherhold stated: ” to provide the best medication for the epilepsy patient to overcome the tribble assistance given before the development of Spritam by 3D printing technology.”

As of now, 3D printed drugs are not in the market there are under research and development stage. Many companies are trying their best to provide the best treatment for the next generations to come. “Every drug increases and complicates the patient’s condition,” said Robert Henderson is true. So let’s hope for better 3D printed pills or drugs in the future. So this is all about 3D printing for medication that might help.

Make the best of Geeetech 3D printer only @ Geeetech official site

Flexible filaments

As the name indicates these more flexible than any other filaments. Due to flexibility these are soft and can be molded into any shape and size with ease.

Pro Series Flex

The filament is the one among TPE which is popular for its elasticity and flexibility and behaves like a real rubber which can bend and mold in any shape and size easily. Therefore, these are made of tightest tolerance with high precision for3D printing. The filament can be best experienced with slower print speeds to avoid filament binding in the extruder.
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 Advantages/properties

• The filament is like a soft rubber making it more flexible and elastic than the popular PLA and ABS filaments
• The filament is good for high-quality objects with large objects because it bonds well between layers
• The heated bed is not needed and it is a durable material with little shrinkage while cooling.

Disadvantages/Issues 

• The printer should be modified otherwise can extrude from the nozzle inconsistency due to its flexible property.
• Hence, needs experienced hands for printing the filament is not for beginners
• For optimal performance the printer nozzle needs fine-tuning.

Applications

• Stoppers, belts, caps, phone cases, bumpers and more can be made from this filament due to its 2 important properties.
• The filament can be used in various fields due to its flexible nature i.e., home appliances, automotive, medical, electrical insulation, weather seals for windows and doors, Kid’s toys and wearable’s and soles of the footwear.

Price Starting from : $30 to $ 50 for 1.75mm/1kg spool

Extrusion Temperature: Vary between 220 to 230 °C.

TPE

This filament is well-know for its flexibility and elasticity. Also helpful in the making of extremely flexible 3D printer material that will have the properties of soft rubber. As the name the Thermoplastic elastomers the filament is superbly flexible and elastic. The less infill you use, the more flexible your finished print will be.
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 Advantages/properties

• Great to use with most of the FDM filaments.
• The filament is like a soft rubber making it more flexible and elastic than the popular PLA and ABS filaments,
• Good for high-quality objects(bonds well between layers).
• The heated bed is not needed.
• Hence, it is a durable material with little shrinkage while cooling.

Disadvantages/Issues

• The printer should be modified otherwise can extrude from the nozzle inconsistency due to its flexible property.
• Hence, needs experienced hands for printing the filament is not for beginners
• For optimal performance the printer nozzle needs fine-tuning.

Applications

• Stoppers, belts, caps, phone cases, bumpers and more can be made from this filament due to its 2 important properties.
• The filament can be used in various fields due to its flexible nature i.e., home appliances, automotive, medical, electrical insulation, weather seals for windows and doors, Kid’s toys and wearable’s and soles of the footwear.

Price Starting from : $30 to $ 50 for 1.75mm/1kg spool

Extrusion Temperature: Vary between 225 to 235 °C.

PCTPE

Plasticized Copolyamide TPE is the combination of synthetic polymer Nylon and flexible filament TPE. Due to the mixture of these 2 filaments the properties and settings are almost the same. Synthetic fabrics are used to dye your prints of any color.

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 Advantages/properties

• Nylon makes it easy to print.
• Flexible like TPE and can be dyed into any color due to Nylon.
• Can work better in critical setup
• Low shrinkage

Disadvantages/Issues

• The filament needs to be dyed in various colors that require an extra step, consumes more time and highly expensive.
• Difficult to print needs experienced hands.
• While printing may lead to blobs and stringing
• Not good with Bowden extruders
• Poor bridging characteristics

Applications

• The main applications are, helps in printing cosplay armor, phone enclosures, and industrial parts.

Price Starting from : $30 for 1.75mm/1kg spool

Extrusion Temperature: Vary between 235 to 245 °C.

Soft PLA

The Soft PLA has similar characteristics as that of normal PLA with one unique property that is flexible like rubber. Due to this it is also, called “Flexible PLA“. Hence, it is compatible with all the 3D printers.
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Advantages/properties

• Soft PLA is flexible, rubbery, elastic and has impact resistance.
• Hence, it acts like a biodegradable PLA due to its low carbon footprints.
• Therefore, it has good vibration dampening characteristics.

Disadvantages/Issues

• It creates clogging, bubbling, and bunching in the nozzle while printing.
• Can’t shape in the desired form due to extremely adhesive nature.
• Hence, need to slow down the printing speed for best results
• A direct extruder is required for the smooth journey of the filament to the bed.
• Not good for objects with more gaps and overhangs.

Applications

• Best for stoppers, belts, caps, phone cases, bumpers and more.
• Unique ergonomic nature helps in printing pen grips, shoe sole inserts.
• The materials which need to be strong such has tires, cell phone covers, and other things with flexible in nature.

Price Starting from : $30 for 1.75mm/1kg spool

Extrusion Temperature: Vary between 220 to 230°C.

TPU

Thermoplastic Polyurethane is the filament that belongs to the class of polyurethane that has unique properties namely elasticity, transparency, and resistance to grease, oil, and abrasion with a shore hardness of 95A. There are various types of TPU namely polyester TPU used to resist oil and hydrocarbons, polyether TPU used in wet environments, and polycaprolactone TPU performs with low-temperature and comparatively more resistant to hydrolysis.
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Advantages/properties

• Resistant to oil, grease, and abrasion.
• Printed parts have low-temperature resistants
• Ease to work
• With the right settings, there will be no curling or delamination.
• Excellent layer to layer adhesion.
• No warping issues.

Disadvantages/Issues

• It creates clogging, bubbling, and bunching in the nozzle while printing.
• A well-polished and smooth look can’t be obtained.
• We need to slow down the printing speed for the results.
• Hence, it doesn’t dissolve in simple chemicals.

Applications

• Best for stoppers, belts, caps, phone cases, bumpers and more.
• Used in automotive instrument panels, caster wheels, power tools, sporting goods, medical devices, drive belts, footwear, inflatable rafts, and a variety of extruded film, sheet, and profile applications.
• The materials which need to be strong such has cell phone covers and other things with flexible in nature.
• Therefore, it helps in the outer casing of antennas for efficient performance even after many wash cycles.

Price Starting from : $30 for 1.75mm/1kg spool

Extrusion Temperature: Vary between 220 to 250°C.

Composite filaments

These are the filaments made up of 2 or more individual components whose combined physical strength exceeds their individual properties as per the name.

Laybrick

Lay-Brick is the 3D material that almost as similar features as LAYWOOD-D3,  Kai Parthy is the inventor of these 2 filaments which are quite amazing, the filament is rough apart from that gives a look and feel of grey stone retaining the flexibility and elasticity of the plastic. The filament should be used with maxi-sized 3D printers. Therefore, it gives the ” Non-plastic look“. The temperature above 210°C the filament produces rough and sandstone result otherwise it will produce a smoother finish.
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Advantages/properties

• The filament is stiff and brittle in nature
• Gives sandstone look rather than plastic
• No warping
• No heated bed required
• Get a different variety of textures depending on the extruder temperature.

Disadvantages/Issues

• Temperature above 210 makes the print rough.

Applications

• Best for landscape and architectural designs.
• Fux-stone, model train scenery can be printed with this filament.

Price Starting from : $40 for 1.75mm/1kg spool

Extrusion Temperature: Vary between 165 to 190°C.

Wooden PLA

The wood filament is a fusion of standard PLA and finely powered wood materials that provide the print with the natural texture of wood. The mixture may contain bamboo, cork, wood dust, and other wooden by-products,  come in the ratio of 70:30 of PLA and wood. Therefore, best used with desktop 3D printers that provide the wooden-like finish. They are various types of wood filaments namely LAYWOO-D3, ColorFabb’s Woodfill series, and Timberfill.
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Advantages/properties

• The natural look of wood and a biodegradable filament
• Similar PLA properties
• Different extruder temperature provide different colors, hotter the darker
• No warp and shrink
• Less abrasive compared to other composite filaments.
• Therefore, as pleasant wood-like smell.

Disadvantages/Issues

• Less strength than natural wood.
• Hence, it is inflexible and brittle makes PLA better filament
• Easily breakable material
• There should not be any sharp turns while working with the filament.

Applications

• Best for landscape and architectural designs.
• Fux-stone, model train scenery can be printed with this filament.
• Wood burns when exposed to high temperature
• Filaments are more expensive than PLA
• Use large-sized nozzles to reduce wear and tear.

Price Starting from : $25 for 1.75mm/1kg spool

Extrusion Temperature: Vary between 220 to 250°C.

Conductive filament

The filament is modified PLA with a conductive carbon particulate with low voltage and low current circuitry not being that technical. The filament helps in making smaller circuit boards on the printer bed. These filaments may consist of sensors and some LEDs( Light-emitting diode). The filament is present for both PLA and ABS users. As the name, it has a conductive nature. Hence, works well with all the 3D printers.

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Advantages/properties

• More flexible than the PLA
• Conductive in nature with small power circuitry.
• No heated bed is required but gives better results with it.

Disadvantages/Issues

• As less layer adhesion
• The filament is more expensive
• Less flexible and durable compared to PLA
• Repeated binding may break the material and shrinks during cooling.

Applications

• Most of its applications may come in the field of electronics i.e., small circuit boards.
• Best for functional prototypes, integrated circuits and electronic components like sensors, LED, and low voltage projects
• Best for Arduino projects.

Price Starting from : $17.99 for 1.75mm/1kg spool

Extrusion Temperature: Vary between 215 to 230°C.

Lay ceramic

As the name gives ceramic or clay finish to the print. The filament has similar properties that of the natural clay when burned and glazed provides strength and gives the elegant look to the object. While using this filament requires extra settings or additional upgrades to the printer for a better print.

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Advantages/properties

• The filament is durable and brittle in its nature
• Can be fired in the kiln to get that ceramic look and can apply glaze
• The Kiln can take the filament to make more amazing objects

Disadvantages/Issues

• Takes more time to heat and cool
• The printed objects are hard in nature
• More expensive

Applications

• Therefore, best used for making mugs, flower pots, model roofing tiles, ashtrays, sculptures, or pottery.

Price Starting from : $200 for 3.mm/1kg

Extrusion Temperature: Vary between 265 to 275°C.

Carbon Fiber Reinforced PLA

As the name, the filament is a mixture of PLA and small carbon fiber strands, designed to fit through the nozzle easily. The carbon contained in the filament provides more rigidity and enhances the structural support to the object to be printed. The 3D printer user who requires stiff and rocky like nature of the objects can use this filament. Drone builders and RC Hobbyists may fall in love with this filament.

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Advantages/properties

• No warp and excellent layer adhesion property
• Provides better print quality and no heated bed is required
• High strength, durable, ductile and stiff
• Little string during the cooling process

Disadvantages/Issues

• Not flexible in nature
• Contains abrasive strands
• Wear and tear of printer nozzles more with brass
• Requires investment in a printer nozzle

Applications

• Drone bodies, propellers, and RC car frames can be made with great ease.
• Frames, supports, and tools can also be made,
• Various materials like protective casing, mechanical parts, and highly durable objects can be formed.

Price Starting from : $60 for 1.75mm/1kg

Extrusion Temperature: Vary between 190 to 230°C.

ColorFabb BrassFill, CopperFill, and BronzeFill

The filament is metal combined with PLA gives absolutely the metal finish look. Therefore, these are tougher to print than MH build PLA filaments, due to metal integrated with plastic prints are heavier but are more authentic in nature. The objects printed can be polished, painted, and sanded that gives a beautiful, unique and elegant look even unpolished objects are classy, matte, with a dull appearance and dusky look amaze people. Therefore, what’s in your mind that can be a desired outcome when polished. The temperature can reach to 14oo °C or above.

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Advantages/properties

• An aesthetically appealing metal finish.
• Therefore, no heated bed is required.
• Heavier than other filaments due to its metallic nature.
• High durable and strength
• Hence, no, shrink while cooling

Disadvantages/Issues

• Expensive filament
• Therefore, require a wear-resistant nozzle
• Printed parts are very brittle in nature.
• Very poor overhangs and bridging property.
• Over-time partial clogging can be seen.
• Heavy objects when printed with it.
• To obtain a smooth finish need to rock tumbling, polishing, or wet sanding needs to be done.

Applications

• Used for cosmetic prints of busts, jewelry, or sculptures.
• Perfect for printing props, costumes, figurines, and robots.
• The filament can also be used by designers as well other than hobbyists looking to make faux metal prints.
• Replicas for Museums
• Best for hardware products.

Price Starting from : $25 to 50 for 1.75mm/1kg

Extrusion Temperature: Vary between 190 to 220°C.

Proto-Pasta Stainless Steel and ColorFabb SteelFill

The filament is a mixture of the steel strands and PLA, thus these are tougher than the MH build filament. Even these can be sanded and painted to get a better look like the above filaments even with an unpolished look the prints get the cast metal from the mold. Therefore, it has high abrasion to brass nozzle you will need to install a hardened steel nozzle before printing. They print like PLA but slower than PLA.

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Advantages/properties

• An aesthetically appealing steel finish.
• Therefore, no heated bed is required.
• Heavier than other filaments due to its metallic nature.
• High durable and strength
• Hence, no, shrink while cooling

Disadvantages/Issues

• Expensive filament
• Printed parts are very brittle in nature.
• Very poor overhangs and bridging property.
• Over-time partial clogging can be seen.
• Heavy objects when printed with it.
• To obtain a smooth finish need to rock tumbling, polishing, or wet sanding needs to be done.
• Not easy to print with for the inexperienced

Applications

• Used for cosmetic prints of busts, jewelry, or sculptures.
• Perfect for printing props, costumes, figurines, and robots.
• The filament can also be used by designers as well other than hobbyists looking to make faux metal prints.
• Replicas for Museums

Price Starting from : $25 to 50 for 1.75mm/1kg

Extrusion Temperature: Vary between 200 to 220°C.

Magnetic Iron PLA

As the name, it has all the magnetic properties as that of the magnet. The filament is a mixture of standard filaments and iron powered due to which magnetics stick to the filament and provide a dusty and gunmetal look to the printed objects. The temperature needs to be 10-20 degrees lesser than what is required for the MH build PLA filament. To get a rusty look you need to spray several times the mixture of hydrogen peroxide of 16oz, the vinegar of 20oz and 1Tbs of salt let it dry and you will get the desired look.

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Advantages/properties

• It provides a rusty and worn look to any print.
• Therefore, no, shrink while cooling
• Extremely durable and has great strength
• The filament is not soluble in nature.
• Hard and heavy prints can be achieved.

Disadvantages/Issues

• Expensive filament
• Due to high abrasion needs to install hardened steel nozzle.
• Heavy objects when printed with it.
• To obtain a smooth finish need to rock tumbling, polishing, or wet sanding needs to be done.
• Hence, not easy to print with it for inexperienced

Applications

• Used for cosmetic prints of busts, accessories, or aged-metal props.
• Therefore, best used for various DIY projects, sensors, and educational tools, etc.
• Home uses it is just like a novelty material.

Price Starting from : $70 for 1.75mm/1kg

Extrusion Temperature: Vary between 195 to 220°C.

PORO-LAY Series

The filament is made from a rubber-elastomeric polymer and a PVA-component. Therefore, there are various types of filaments namely Lay-Felt, Gel-Lay, and Lay-Fomm 40 and 60. These filaments can be characterized as highly porous and flexible filaments.

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Advantages/properties

• These filaments are highly flexible and porous in nature
• Also, have a sponge, jelly, foamy and soft in nature.
• When soaked in water dissolves PVA material and left with the rubber-elastomer.
• Unique and experimental uses.
• Lightweight objects even they are large in size.

Disadvantages/Issues

• Printed objects will be soft and sponge in nature.
• Not used for hard and stiff prints
• Hardware components can not be printed
• Expensive filament.

Applications

• Therefore, best used in filters, permeable membranes, jellyfish models, stamps, or intricate sponges depending on the material.
• Can be used in making of artificial paper and future cloths
• Used for the rubber-like, sponge in nature applications such as ink-reservoirs, bio-cells, micro-foam, and elastics.
• Also used for tissue and orientated objects making.

Price Starting from : $160 for 1.75mm/1kg

Extrusion Temperature: Vary between 220 to 230°C.

Specialty filaments

Like the name, these are special kinds of filaments. Now let’s look at the various types of specialty filaments and their special features.

Polycarbonate(PC)

The filament is more strong, impact and highly resistant in nature. Polycarbonate is a tough and highly durable thermoplastic.

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Advantages/properties

• Hence, very resistant to any temperature
• It is flexible and can bend without crack
• Transparent in nature
• No soluble

Disadvantages/Issues

• Should store in a dry place
• Above all not for food components
• Expensive than standard filaments.

Applications

• Most commonly used in RC parts or drone parts.
• Therefore, it can be used in applications related to electrical, mechanical, or automotive components.
• Due to its optical clarity can be used in lighting projects or for screens.

Price Starting from : $120  for 1.75mm/1kg

Extrusion Temperature: Vary between 210 to 290°C.

Bendlay

The filament as exciting new features and that is extremely translucent and flexible in nature. Hence, 91% of light passes through the filament. Therefore, it is also flexible and elastic. The other modified version of it is Butadiene.

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Advantages/properties

• Flexible, transparent and provides strength to the material.
• Absorbs less water compared to ABS
• Food safe
• High interlayer adhesion
• Less warping
• Unbreakable and easy to print

Disadvantages/Issues

• Acetone will make it crushy.
• Suffer from whitening when bend.
• Harder than ABS

Applications

• Best used in food packing and food industry.
• Best used ornate cups, containers, or translucent objects.
• Therefore, it can also be used in medical devices.
• Hence, it can be used in the making of containers and utensils.

Price Starting from : $100  for 1.75mm/1kg

Extrusion Temperature: Vary between 225 to 245°C.

Moldlay

As the name, it is mainly used for molding which as wax-like properties. The filament is stiff and rigid at the room temperature when heated with 170 10 180 degrees starts to extrude. The prints can be made not only for permanent mold but also for lost wax molding purposes. Therefore print takes the long process usually in the traditional form but thanks to Moldlay it consumes time.

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Advantages/properties

• No warping
• No heated bed required
• Easy to print
• Inexpensive to print the objects

Disadvantages/Issues

• Softer than any other filament
• Feed gear may not work
• Melted wax is runny in nature so won’t deposit correctly

Applications

• Therefore, it can be used for molding purpose
• Designed for silicone molding or completely vaporizing for investment casting.

Price Starting from : $80  for 1.75mm/1kg

Extrusion Temperature: Vary between 175 to 195°C.

Continuous Fiber 

Continuous fiber filaments are designed for the ready to use products other than most 3D printing materials are meant for rapid prototyping and testing models.

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Advantages/properties

• Strong, durable and ready to take abuse.
• When comes in contact with a strong base filament like Nylon with Continuous fiber provide a professional and beautiful finish

Applications

• Best used for production parts, drone bodies, or even manufacturing molds.

Price Starting from : $50 to $100  for 1.75mm/1kg

Extrusion Temperature: Vary between 245 to 265°C.

Support filaments

These filaments are water-soluble and also act as support filaments with other filaments while using dual extruders. Support filaments are necessary to obtain the best prints or prefect without any overhangs.

PVA filament

The filament is a well-known support material when printing with ABS or PLA filament. The full name of PVA filament is Polyvinyl Alcohol. The filament is transparent with slightly yellow in color and most often used with dual extrusion printers one with the primary material and on the other hand, this dissolve filament provides support to avoid overhangs.

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Advantages/properties

• Acts as a support material
• Biodegradable, durable and non-toxic
• Water-soluble
• Best with PLA due to similar heating temperatures
• Difficult printing makes easy

Disadvantages/Issues

• Dissolves in water easily
• Should be kept in a dry place
• Expensive material than other filaments.

Applications

• Best used for models with internal supports or supports for incredibly detailed models with many overhangs.
• It can be used in thickener in paper adhesives, in personal hygiene products, as a mold-release agent, kid’s putty, and freshwater fishing products.

Price Starting from : $80  for 1.75mm/1kg

Extrusion Temperature: Vary between 190 to 220°C.

HIPS

High Impact Polystyrene is similar to ABS and best support material. It is bright, white and biodegradable in nature. It also acts as secondary as that of PVA and liquid hydrocarbon dissolves the filament as soon as possible. The filament is well dissolved in limonene.

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Advantages/properties

• Acts as a support material
• Biodegradable, durable and non-toxic
• Best with ABS

Disadvantages/Issues

• A heated bed is required without it difficult to print.
• Common issue while printing is curling and adhesion.

Applications

• Used for models with internal supports or supports for models with many overhangs.
• The food industry uses for packing, medicinal trays, signs, all kinds of kid’s toys, and much more.
• The filament can be manipulated in many ways as required.

Price Starting from : $25  for 1.75mm/1kg

Extrusion Temperature: Vary between 220 to 250°C.

LAYaPVA

The filament is a support material that quickly dissolves in water. And as best viscosity when heated at a temperature of 230-degrees. Of the LAY-AWAY Support Series, LAYaPVA dissolves the fastest.

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Advantages/properties

• Therefore, it is stiff and water-soluble
• Act as support material
• Dissolves quicker than normal PVA

Disadvantages/Issues

• Dissolves in water easily
• Should be kept in a dry place
• Expensive material than other filaments

Applications

• Therefore, best used for models with internal supports or supports for incredibly detailed models with many overhangs.

Price Starting from : $160 for 1.75mm/1kg

Extrusion Temperature: Vary between 220 to 250°C.

LAY-CLOUD

Hence, the best support material for flexible filaments and when overexposed to water it becomes gelly and soft. Therefore, when heated with a 240-degree temperature to achieve the best viscosity.

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Advantages/properties

• The filament is stiff and water-soluble
• Therefore, act as the best support material for flexible filaments.

Disadvantages/Issues

• Hence, dissolves in water easily
• Should be kept in a dry place
• Therefore, expensive material than other filaments

Applications

• Therefore, best used for models with internal supports or supports for incredibly detailed models with many overhangs.

This guide to 3D Printing is about the remaining filaments which were left in the previous guide. Hence, it is all about the guide to 3D printer filaments. There is one more upcoming part of this that will help you choose better.

Importance of 3d printer filament

Hence, when it comes to a 3D printer, filament plays the main character as a thread in sewing the clothes. Therefore, filament acts as a thread along with 3D printers to build real-world objects. So it becomes very important to know what is it made of, what different types of filaments, what its cost, what are its benefits or applications, its advantages, and disadvantages, which is the best 3D printer filament, where to store a filament and, can filament be recycled let’s go on a tour of all these topics one by one in this guide.

Hence, you can now wisely choose which is the better filament for your 3D printer after understanding all the above-mentioned points related to the 3D printer filament so that you can enjoy printing what you want to print without any issues.

Do you know what is 3D filament made of?

3D filament acts as ink to the 3D printer so now let’s take a look at how it’s made. The filament is made up of plastic that undergoes 3 processes namely heating, extruding, and cooling plastic to form several nurdles. The filaments are usually made of thermoplastics that have different melting point properties when needed to print.

The diameter of the filament depends on the pull rather than the push through the nozzle after the plastic has been heated up. The diameter does not take the diameter of the extruder nozzle. And even the width is the same process as that of the diameter. Most all the filaments are 1.75 mm or 3mm in diameter.

The filaments come in a variety of colors and with different properties. But the plastic nurdles are always white and clear to produce various colors of filaments and with unique properties, several pigments or additives are added while melting the plastic.

List of 3D printer filaments

In this, I’m gone discuss the different types of 3D printer filaments. The filaments are differentiated into 5 types based on their properties. Namely standard, flexible, composite, specialty, and, support filament. When you get a 3D printer to home the first question that arises to mind is which filament to buy. so let’s discuss them one by one.

Standard Filament:

As the name standard filament, t is the most commonly used filament. All 3D printers are mainly capable of using these filaments which the 2 famous filaments are PLA and ABS filaments. Now let’s go through all the standard filaments.

PLA ( Polylactic Acid): It is one of the most commonly used filaments for most desktop 3D printers. And popular among Professionals and amateurs. It is also famous as an “Eco-friendly 3D printer filament” because it is made of organic renewable resources like cornstarch and sugarcane which do not produce pollution or contribute to global warming. Glow-in-dark colors and translucency are the special features/effects of this 3D printer material.

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Advantages/Properties

• PLA doesn’t require a heating bed, doesn’t have a contagious smell, and due to its pleasant nature, many of them prefer it.
• On the other hand, it is easier and safer than any other printer.
• It is faster than any other printer with less wrap so it is best for beginners.

Disadvantages/issues

• ABS is stronger or solid than PLA
• The filament is more difficult to print when it comes in contact with moisture
• Inclined to clogging the printer nozzle.

Applications

• PLA filaments are mostly used in the field of Medicine for various surgical implants including pins, rods, screws, and mesh as they all break down in the human body.
• Also best used for cosmetic prints, prototypes, desk toys, and low-stress applications.
• Another few examples are where PLA is used in food packaging, disposable tableware, and diapers.

Price Starting from : $19.98 t0 $ 50 for 1.75mm/1kg spool

Extrusion Temperature: Vary between 180 to 230 °C.

ABS(Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene): ABS is another most popular 3D printer material. Due to its high melting point, it becomes soft when melted so that it can take any shape and gets cooled quickly becoming more stiff, ductile, and tough to break.
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Advantages/Properties

• Easy material to work due to it’s easy to extrude from the printer’s nozzle
• Most flexible, lightweight, stiff, ductile, durable, and strong nature makes it preferable than any other printer with wear resistance and heat tolerance.
• Nontoxic, water-resistance, and cheapest among all the 3D filaments.
• Post-processed with acetone to provide a glossy look.

Disadvantages/issues

• ABS is a non-renewable resource made of petroleum
• When heated up produces an unpleasant odor
• Requires high heated bed to print the material
• It requires ventilation because of its awful chemical odor.
• UV radiations break down ABS which loses its color and becomes brittle after long-term use in an outdoor environment
• ABS is not good for home users.

Applications

• ABS can be used in various fields such as automotive parts, moving parts, musical instruments, kitchen appliances, electronic housings, and various toys, like LEGO.
• ABS to make plastic wrap, water bottles, and cups are some other applications

Price Starting from $22.9  for a 1.75mm/1kg spool

Link: http://bit.ly/2nzudfh

Extrusion Temperature: Vary between 210 to 250 °C.

PRO Series PLA: The filament is the formulation of PLA for better and high-quality finished 3D printed products for professional use. These PLA are produced with more precise specifications and a tolerance of  ± 0.05mm. It has all the similar properties of PLA.

Advantages/Properties

•  A visually distinct finish and a more vibrant, opaque color than PLA filament.
• PLA doesn’t require a heating bed, doesn’t have a contagious smell, and due to its pleasant nature, many of them prefer it.
• On the other hand, it is easier and safer than any other printer.
• It is faster than any other printer with less wrap so it is best for beginners.

Disadvantages/issues

• ABS is stronger or solid than PLA
• The filament is more difficult to print when it comes in contact with moisture
• Inclined to clogging the printer nozzle.

Applications

• PLA filaments are mostly used in the field of Medicine for various surgical implants including pins, rods, screws, and mesh as they all break down in the human body.
• Also best used for cosmetic prints, prototypes, desk toys, and low-stress applications.
• Another few examples are where PLA is used in food packaging, disposable tableware, and diapers.

Price Starting from : $19.98 t0 $ 50 for 1.75mm/1kg spool

Extrusion Temperature: Vary between 180 to 230 °C.

PRO Series ABS: The filament is the formulation of the ABS for the more beautiful, glossy, and, opaque finish with high-quality, precision 3D printed products. These ABS are produced with more precise specifications and a tolerance of  ± 0.05mm. It has all the similar properties of  ABS.

Advantages/Properties

• Easy material to work due to it’s easy to extrude from the printer’s nozzle
• The most flexible, lightweight, stiff, ductile, durable, and strong nature makes it preferable than any other printer with wear resistance and heat tolerance.
• Nontoxic, water-resistance, and cheapest among all the 3D filaments.
• Post-processed with acetone to provide a glossy look.

Disadvantages/issues

• ABS is a non-renewable resource made of petroleum
• Therefore, when heated up produces an unpleasant odor
• Requires high heated bed to print the material
• It requires ventilation because of its awful chemical odor.
• UV radiations break down ABS which loses its color and becomes brittle after long-term use in an outdoor environment
• ABS is not good for home users.

Applications

• Hence, ABS can be used in various fields such as automotive parts, moving parts, musical instruments, kitchen appliances, electronic housings, and various toys, like LEGO.
• ABS to make plastic wrap, water bottles, and cups are some other applications

Price Starting from $22.9  for a 1.75mm/1kg spool

Extrusion Temperature: Vary between 210 to 250 °C.

Tough PLA:  The filament is stronger than the normal PLA with heat resistance up to 60°C.  Therefore, ABS comes with its problems of overhangs, wrapping, and interlayer adhesion but this filament is slightly modified from the normal PLA and ABS which makes it the best for large printers. It still supports all the printers and also provides full geometric freedom while designing.

Advantages/Properties

• The tough and impact strength of its similar to ABS making it a much better filament for practical printing purposes.
• Ease of printing and reliable nature make it better for larger volume printing.
• Combining it with PVA is more beneficial and gives more complex curves, internal details, and harsh overhangs 3D print beautifully.

Disadvantages/issues

• The filament is more difficult to print when it comes in contact with moisture
• Inclined to clogging the printer nozzle.

Applications

• Used to produce strong plastic parts, large models, and complex geometries.

Price Starting from : $19.98 t0 $ 50 for 1.75mm/1kg spool

Extrusion Temperature: Vary between 210 t0 230°C.

ColorFabb nGen: The filament doesn’t require to refine print settings again and again so you can print once you set up the printer for a long time without any disturbance so it is good for beginners. Gives a frosty and crisp look when printed with it.

Advantages/Properties

• Print materials with a wide range of temperatures and speeds you can spend more time printing rather than refining its settings.
• Due to its high heat resistance flows nicely into the nozzle and doesn’t clog often.
• Best printed on a heated bed and has less wrapping due to similar adhesion.
• Good interlayer adhesion and low odor while printing.

Disadvantages/issues

• More expensive than any other filament
• The brittle nature makes printed materials easily breakable.
• Hairy prints, pillowing, and filament seeping/oozing may occur during printing

Applications

• Best for printing durable parts avoiding print failure.
• Mind-boggling ability to print parts with many bridges successfully where other 3D printer materials have failed.

Price Starting from : $30.00 t0 $ 50 for 1.75mm/1kg spool

Extrusion Temperature: Vary between 220 to 240°C.

Glow-In-The-Dark: As the name says Glow-in-the-dark glows in the dark like a twinkling of stars at night in the sky. Therefore, it requires normal settings as that of PLA and ABS. The material printed out of it glows to the brightest when it is dark and emits all the vibrant colors in which it is printed. For more glow add more perimeters to your prints. These filaments are found in three categories of filament PLA, ABS, and TPU.

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Advantages/Properties

• Properties are similar to normal PLA don’t require a heated bed, eco-friendly, easy to use, renewable, safe to use, and durable.
• During the cooling process has low shrinkage.

Disadvantages/issues

• Not safe for food products
• It is abrasive and has frayed out the nozzle for this you can install a hardened steel nozzle.

Applications

• Mainly used to produce children’s room decor products and ceiling stars.
• Used for light cover switches and novelty decoration products
• For Halloween themes, it is the best filament.
• Best friend for artistic people.

Price Starting from : $18.00 t0 $ 50 for 1.75mm/1kg spool

Extrusion Temperature: Vary between 180 to 240°C.

Nylon (polyamide): This is a synthetic polymer that especially has unique features compared to PLA and ABS, it is undoubtedly stronger, impact, durable, and versatile than the popular filaments. There are various kinds of nylon filaments explained below.

Advantages/Properties

• Flexible, strong, impact, and durable
• 100% thermoplastic in nature
• Less brittle than ABS and PLA
• Products can be moved for sale after printing without sanding, polishing, scraping, or pesky acetone vapor baths.
• Easily colored/dyed

Disadvantages/issues

• Nylon should be preserved in a dry area free from moisture because it is very sensitive.
• At the start, the filament may wrap while printing.
• Printed parts are less precise due to shrinking while cooling
• Max lifetime of 12 months of nylon of various brands

Applications

• High interlayer adhesion makes it perfect for living hinges and other functionally strong parts.
•  Also ready to print tough functional parts, wear parts, and production-ready prints.
• Hence, well-suited for various consumer products, tools, mechanical components, machine parts, structural parts, containers, and much more.

Price Starting from: $40.00 t0 $ 50 for 1.75mm/1kg spool

Extrusion Temperature: Vary between 210 t0 250°C.

NylonX: Polyamide with chopped carbon strands this filament comes out with amazing properties which are better than the normal Nylon filament. In addition, its matte finish look provides the most elegant look and standardizes the richness of the products.

Advantages/Properties

• Nylon combined with micro-particles of carbon makes the filament stiffer, impact resistance, and high strength.
• As for stability and rigidity, the products are much more likely to wrap compared to ordinary nylon.
• Eliminates the post-print processing.
• Strong like carbon and durable like nylon.
• Products can be moved for sale after printing without sanding, polishing, scraping, or pesky acetone vapor baths.
• Easily colored/dyed

Disadvantages/issues

• NylonX should be preserved in a dry area free from moisture because it is very sensitive.
• At the start, the filament may wrap while printing.
• Printed parts are less precise due to shrinking while cooling
• Max lifetime of 12 months of nylon of various brands

Applications

• An engineering-graded filament that gives you the durability of nylon and stiffness of carbon is always ready for home products 3D printing and also ready to print tough functional parts, wear parts, and production-ready prints.

Price Starting from: $39.99 t0 $ 50 for 1.75mm/1kg spool

Extrusion Temperature: Vary between 210 t0 260°C.

I hope this guide to 3D printing filaments part I might help you to choose the filaments. This is not the end there are other parts coming up in the future.

• Require a lesser number of components
• Production of required components may be stopped
• Takes lots of time
• Traditional methods are costly when comes to produce a lesser number of components
• Can’t provide the rail operator with latest technology parts
• Lesser number of labor can cut the production cost to around 50%

Benefits of 3D printing for UK rail department

Deutsche Bahn Consultancy and Engineering service provider, Angel trains British rolling stock operating company, Stratasys is an American 3D printer manufacturer and lastly Chiltern Railways British train operating company their collaboration was first announced in December 2018 to produce 3D printed replacement parts for trains. As a result, UK has already announced becoming a world leader in the additive manufacturing sector by 2025.

Therefore, UK government has taken a step ahead by collaborating with these companies to manufacture passenger trains. The components such as armrests and grab handles using additive manufacturing 3D printing techniques. Hence, the company is looking for other applications, researching 3D printed seat tables and custom braille lettering  abnormal passenger’s

3D printing technology is well utilized in Rail companies for customization.  The 3D printed passenger train components are running successfully with seven grab handles that were produced within a 2 an half months and cutting the cost down from  £15,000.  Hence, the cost saving of 50% per part will be achievable.

The testing of other applications and research is carried out in 3D printed rail components. So, to provide a better journey for rail passenger’s in the future.

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• In November 2018 the First 3D printed Human Corneal Tissue at Newcastle University, printed inclusive of human corneal stromal cells with a 3D bio-ink human cornea that could last more than a week.
• The research took place over the past few decades, Dr. Che Connon tissue engineering professor from Newcastle University, Tyne, U.K. has been working with human corneal cells.
• The 3D printed bio-ink human cornea that has encapsulated corneal keratocytes advertised high growth at day 1 (>90%) post-printing and at 7 (83%) and it was a combined mixture of sodium alginate and methacrylate collagen.
• This year the U.S Researchers, Florida A & M University a team of researchers led by Mandip Sachdeva Pharmaceutics professor developed a 3D printed cornea similar to a real cornea following the research work of Dr. Che Connon.
• The team developed a highly efficient printer that could print six corneas within 10 minutes in 2018. The researchers could produce 1 cornea.

What is the importance of the cornea?

Human cornea is the most important part of the eye which is very transparent in nature and forms the outer most layer front part that encloses iris, pupil and anterior chamber. Cornea serves as the protective layer of the eye, pony up the focusing power of the human eye. Cornea is responsible for the transmission and refraction of the light. That is, in turn, focused on the retina with the help of the anterior chamber and lens. So cornea is most important for humans to see accurately because approximately 80% of the refraction of the human eye is done by it.  Therefore, 3D bio-ink human cornea might help us.

When do we require cornea transplantation?

Multiple reasons why you many require corneal transplantation. It’s most probably due to infections and inflammations people don’t care about it. And, later that may cause a great blunder called corneal scarring. Due which people are unable to see properly and accurately. Some of the infections and corneal disorders due to which people need to undergo corneal transplants.

• Corneal abrasion: It is a condition in which there is a scratch on the surface layer of the cornea involving loss of the epithelial layer of the eye which led to trauma of the surface of the eye. Pain, redness, light sensitivity, and feels as if there is a foreign creature within the eye. These are the most common symptoms.
• Corneal dystrophy: a medical condition that is hereditary in nature, which affects one or more parts of the cornea lose their normal vision or clarity due to a layered buildup of cloudy material.
• Corneal ulcer: refers to infectious cause, an inflammatory or infective condition that involves disruption of its epithelial layer with an involvement of the corneal stroma. Mainly caused to people with vitamin A deficiency. Due to nerve exposure corneal ulcers are painful and cause tearing, scrunch up eyes when viewing, and loss of the eye vision. Many other signs that cause ulcers such as miosis, aqueous flare, uveitis, axon reflex, prostaglandins, histamine, acetylcholine, and photophobia.
• Corneal neovascularization(CNV): occurs due to excessive growth of blood vessels from the precorneal plexus into the avascular cornea, caused by deprivation of oxygen from the air. Sight-threatening conditions caused due to infection, chemical injury, autoimmune, chemical burns and wearing contact lenses for a long period.

• Fuchs dystrophy( FCED or FED): Ernst Fuchs the Austrian ophthalmologist first invented this condition that is also called cloudy morning vision. Later, which affects both eyes and most commonly found in women than in men. It is a slowly progressing corneal dystrophy.
• Keratitis: Inflammation of the cornea, in which the front surface of the eye is inflamed that causes pain, impaired eyesight, photophobia, red-eye, and a dusty sensation.
• Keratoconus: Affects both the eyes, it is a degenerative disease that results in progressive thinning of the cornea. Results in blurry vision, double vision, nearsightedness, astigmatism, and light sensitivity.

Impact of 3D printed Bio-ink Human Cornea

In 2012-13 the survey done by the World Health Organization resulted in 12.7 million people need to be corneal transplantation. Therefore, 1 in 70 of the needs are covered worldwide. The transplantation helped to prevent corneal blindness. 4.9 million suffering from total blindness due to corneal scarring. The rate of cornea donation is less compared to the people required to transplant the cornea which led to the invention of 3D printing bio-ink human cornea which gave life to billions of people through transplantation. Artificial cornea may help millions of people to see this mesmerizing nature created by god. Through corneal transplantation, people can fulfill their dreams and can make history. Human eyes play a very vital role in each and every human being, 3D printing technology is helping to develop similar human cornea that can give new life to the people who are suffering from this.

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