POLYCARBONATE 3D PRINTING

POLYCARBONATE 3D PRINTING makenica.com/polycarbonate-3d-printing-2 September 19, 2020

Polycarbonate (PC) is a thermoplastic best known for its strength and durability. Used in the making of bulletproof glass, polycarbonate is lightweight yet extremely tough. It is naturally transparent and exhibits a high resistance to heat and impact which makes it a popular choice of material in 3D printing.

This article will provide you with all that you need to know about polycarbonates in the world of 3D printing.

WHY CHOOSE POLYCARBONATE FOR PRINTING? Polycarbonate (PC) filament is a tough material which has some advantages over printing with other filaments like PLA and ABS. The durability and flexibility of PC are higher than that of PLA but lower than nylon. It is lighter and less dense than ABS, while also exceeding ABS, PLA or PMMA in strength.

Polycarbonate has an extremely high resistance to heat and its structural integrity remains intact at temperatures as high as 150° C (whereas PLA begins to deform at 60°C), which makes it suitable for use in high-temperature applications.

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It is flexible enough to be bent without breaking at room temperature and can handle more torsional stress than other thermoplastics.

WHAT ARE THE CHALLENGES WHILE 3D PRINTING WITH POLYCARBONATE? Although PC has many desirable qualities required for high-quality 3D printing, certain properties make printing with this thermoplastic quite difficult.

Polycarbonate, like nylon, is hygroscopic. This means that it absorbs moisture from the air. Because of this, it needs to be stored in an air-tight, moisture-free environment after opening otherwise its printing performance, as well as the strength, will be affected.

Another challenge is that it requires very high temperatures for printing. If printed at a temperature too low or with excessive cooling, it will extrude poorly and the layers will not have proper adhesion. It is also more prone to warping and shrinkage.

Nonetheless, if you have the right printer capable of providing the required hightemperature conditions for PC with an enclosed build volume, you have nothing to worry about.

WHICH IS THE RIGHT 3D PRINTER TO PRINT WITH POLYCARBONATE? As you now know, it's not easy to print with polycarbonate. But the right 3D printer for polycarbonate can make your life a lot easier.

But what is the right printer?

As I said, polycarbonates require extremely high temperatures for printing. So the right 3D printer would be one that can reach and maintain high hot end and bed end temperatures. Also, it's important to keep the printer in an enclosure to ensure stable heat.

One more thing to keep in mind while choosing the right printer is that polycarbonates have a hard time sticking to anything. The best surface to use while printing with polycarbonate is polycarbonate. If using other surfaces like borosilicate glass, you require large amounts of adhesives like Cryanoacrylate to avoid the print from getting warped and being pulled off the heated bed.

WHAT ARE THE THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND WHILE 3D PRINTING WITH POLYCARBONATE? Now we will look at certain tips and tricks that are essential if you want a perfect polycarbonate 3D print.

1. Moisture

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As discussed, PC is hygroscopic and so it needs to be kept dry when not in use so that it doesn't absorb atmospheric moisture. This is essential because if the filament is even a little wet, it will result in bad quality prints.

You should always consider drying your filament before using it, even if you've kept it in an air-tight container because being safe is better than sorry. Even a small amount of moisture in the filament can vaporize during printing to create bubbles in the print which can make your prints less durable and cloudy. It also affects the transparency of the final print.

2. Nozzle Temperature While 3D printing with polycarbonates, the minimum hot end temperature required for best results is between 290째C and 300째C. This temperature can be lowered if you're working with a composite PC but it is inferior in quality to pure polycarbonate.

Hot end temperatures beneath 290째C or even slow printing speed can result in jamming. That is why it's important to know the specifications of the 3D printer you will be using beforehand.

3. Ambient Temperature Another pointer to keep in mind is that if a consistent bed temperature is not maintained, polycarbonate can warp and shrink.

The bed should reach and maintain temperatures between 135 and 150째C to avoid shrinkage and warping.

Effective bed adhesion is also very important when working with PC. When the material cools down, it could separate or crack if the layers do not stick together properly. To ensure this, you should maintain the ambient temperature by properly enclosing the printer. That is why an enclosure is important while 3D printing with polycarbonate.

WHAT ARE THE APPLICATIONS OF POLYCARBONATE? Polycarbonate is widely used in the manufacturing of many products. Recently there was a lot of debate around the use of polycarbonate for making baby bottles. This was because PC is said to release bisphenol A particles which are harmful to our health, and so using this in baby products is not ideal. Some countries have even banned the use of PC in manufacturing baby bottles. Polycarbonates are also known to cause a large amount of pollution in the environment.

But by using polycarbonate for 3D printing, we can promote the possibility of recycling this thermoplastic. Thanks to its durability and transparency, even recycled PC can be used to make functional prototypes and beautiful designs.

PC, being originally transparent, is also used to prototype windows, production of optical glass, motorcycle helmets and bulletproof windows. Manufacturing these 3/4

products using other materials would be costlier and so polycarbonate is also saving money.

The high heat resistance of polycarbonate makes it an excellent choice to create functional prototypes where other materials like ABS would warp under heat or stress.

CONCLUSION Polycarbonate is the strongest filament that can be used for 3D printing services. It has a tensile strength, durability and heat resistance which makes it the ideal option for creating high-strength, functional components. However, working with polycarbonate is not the easiest but by following this article word-to-word and proceeding in the right manner and keeping all the tips and tricks in mind, you can get the best results possible.

Happy Printing!

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