Material Specifications for 3D Printing Plastics

All-Rounder Materials

The iglide 3D printing plastics, which can be used under normal conditions for any type of wear application, are considered all-rounders.

• The SLS powder iglide i3 and the tribofilament iglide i150 are our bestsellers.
• If an all-rounder material with significantly higher flexural strength and/or temperature resistance is required, iglide i230 is the right material for your application.

Heat-Resistant Materials

This category includes 3D printing plastic materials that can withstand a permanent application temperature of at least 248°F (without deforming): For such higher application temperatures, we offer wear-resistant tribofilaments and laser sintering powders.

What needs to be considered when processing heat-resistant tribofilaments?

To process high-temperature filaments, you need a 3D printer with a build chamber temperature of at least 320°F. It is particularly important to store the high-temperature filaments protected from moisture and to dry them before use in order to avoid undesirable quality problems.

ESD-Suitable Materials

Our electrostatically dissipative materials are ideal for applications where ESD specifications are essential for avoiding damage to electronic components and manufacturing anti-static parts for machines that require ATEX certification.

In addition to its antistatic specifications, iglide i8-ESD and i9-ESD are also characterized by their outstanding rigidity, as a result of which the parts are deformed to a lesser degree than other materials under the same load. Like all other igus 3D printing materials, the ESD SLS powders contain solid lubricants, which ensure especially low friction and make additional lubrication unnecessary.

New product: iglide i9-ESD has a lower conductivity than iglide i8-ESD, which prevents unwanted discharge currents between sensitive electrical components. This makes it particularly suitable for electronic connectors.

Chemical-Resistant Materials

You can find the chemical resistance of individual materials by selecting "Technical data" in the material shop or "more information" for the respective material in the 3D printing service tool.

The plastics are tested for resistance to the respective chemicals. Mixtures are not taken into account. All details refer to room temperature. The resistance of the plastics is divided into resistant (+), conditionally resistant (0) and non-resistant (-).

Food-Safe Materials

Our 3D printing materials also include some with food conformity for safe use in the food and packaging industry. Food conformity guarantees that materials that come into contact with food have been tested for the level of transferred plastic components. EU Regulation 10/2011 and the FDA in the USA stipulate limit values for this, above which the material is no longer food-safe. The permitted contact time also plays a role and varies depending on the FDA or EU 10/2011 declaration of conformity and ambient temperature.

Tips for 3D printing with food-safe tribofilament:

• Protect food-compliant filament from dust
• Thoroughly clean all contact parts before printing, especially the extruder pinion, print nozzle, and print bed
• Do not use any adhesive or use food-grade adhesive
• Select slicing software settings for a dense surface
• Reduce the printing speed and adjust the line width to the nozzle diameter

Materials for Structural Components and Multi-Material Printing

The fiber-reinforced 3D print filament igumid P150 and P190 have been specially developed as partner materials for iglide i150 and i190 for the manufacture of particularly strong and at the same time low-friction components produced with the multi-material printing process.

As a multi-material compound, the wear resistance and sliding properties of the respective tribofilament and the special rigidity of the igumid filament are combined in one component through inseparably bonded layers.

Thanks to their impressively high flexural strength, igumid filaments are also suitable for producing lightweight structural components.