Liqcreate, a Dutch 3D printing material company, has launched Elastomer-X, a new ultra-soft elastic 3D printing resin, to its materials line. This is intended to be one of the market’s softest 3D printing elastomer resins. It has a Shore A hardness of 43, which is comparable to soft TPU and silicone materials.
It is ideal for creating elastic parts and soft digital lattice systems due to its high elongation, good tear strength, and low shore A hardness.
Elastomer-X – Elastic 3D Printing Resin
Elastomer-X, Liqcreate’s new TPU-like photopolymer resin, is intended to be interoperable with open SLA, DLP, and MSLA systems operating in the 385-420 nm range. The material is distinguished by its outstanding elongation, good tear strength, and elastomeric qualities, as shown in the table below. Because of these characteristics, the resin is an ideal solution for the manufacture of digital lattice foams, soft end of arm tooling (EOAT) for robots, grommets, bellows, and elastic industrial parts.
Liqcreate Flexible & Elastic 3D Printing Resins
Liqcreate now offers three commercial flexible or elastic resins under its own brand, thanks to the inclusion of Elastomer-X. Each of the three resins has a specific application.
- Premium Flex: The most rigid of the three materials is Premium Flex. With a Shore A of 65, it is nevertheless flexible and soft, making it suitable for prototyping and yielding faster printing speeds than the other resins.
- Flexible-X: Flexible-X is a significantly softer resin (Shore A 55), with a higher degree of softness and good tear strength for additional engineering applications.
- Elastomer-X: Finally, the recently added resin Elastomer-X is the softest material in its spectrum, with a Shore A of 43. This resin can be tinted practically any colour and has a decent rip strength, aiming for even softer applications where a soft TPU or silicone would ordinarily be utilised. It is one of the most tear resistant materials in its class of low Shore A photopolymer 3D-printing resins, with a tear strength of 10 – 12 kN/m.
Applications of flexible photopolymer resins
There are numerous applications that would benefit from a soft resin with high tear strength. Consider the numerous possibilities for creating soft lattice structures that can mimic foams! In addition to foams, the robotic industry can benefit from soft silicone-like materials to mimic skin or to make soft robot grippers and fingers. In terms of industry, the soft end of arm tooling (EOAT) industry can now produce extremely soft grippers. Furthermore, with the help of Liqcreate Elastomer-X resin, applications such as grommets, bellows, and general elastic industrial parts can be manufactured.
Liqcreate specialises in resin development and production for 3D printers such as SLA, MSLA, and DLP. Clients use the firm’s current material portfolio in a variety of applications, including prototype and end-use part fabrication in the medical, industrial, automotive, and consumer goods industries. The company’s current product line includes premium, creative, engineering, castable, and general-purpose resins, each with unique qualities to address a specific target market. For example, Liqcreate’s general-purpose polymers offer users high print accuracy and a smooth finish.
Liqcreate has expanded its portfolio in recent years, introducing the dental-focused Liqcreate Premium model, Dental Model Pro, Gingiva Mask, and wax-based casting resins. MSLA focused Premium Flex and Tough resins resin with increased print speed were developed in the engineering field. Liqcreate introduced the Tough-X, Flexible-X, and Composite-X photopolymers for the most demanding applications, which have high impact resistance and rebound properties. With the introduction of its Composite-X material in 2021, Liqcreate has added an ultra-stiff resin to its portfolio that is distinct from the rest of its offerings. The polymer is reinforced with micro-nano particles, which gives it excellent strength characteristics; when heated, it reacts by becoming significantly more rigid than conventional polymers.
Visit Liqcreate’s dedicated website to learn more about its material portfolio, or contact a Liqcreate representative or dealer to learn more about the new Elastomer-X photopolymer 3D-printing resin!
