In 3D printing, a component is printed layer by layer along a specified path. This technique allows companies to produce their goods without much effort. However, various parameters such as temperature, printing speed, printing direction, layer height and geometry of the component can influence the printing result.

At the Institute for Composite Materials headed by Professor Dr-Ing. Alois K. Schlarb at TUK, the team is working on 3D printing technologies. One of the researchers’ goals is to optimize the properties of the printed products. “Once a layer is printed, it cools down. When the next layer is applied on top of it, it has a higher temperature than the one underneath, and the layer underneath heats up again,” explains Miaozi Huang, research assistant at the institute. “This contact temperature or local temperature between the printed part and the part to be printed influences the quality of the seam or the weld.” This plays a major role in the properties of the product. In the finished component, this is a weak spot, especially if the local temperature was not high enough when the seams were created.

This is where the work of the engineers from Kaiserslautern comes in: The team has developed a software which during printing ensures that various constants such as the temperature of the print nozzle or the printing speed can be flexibly changed – depending on the shape of the component and the plastic used. “The aim of our technology is to optimally exploit the material properties,” says Alexander Schlicher, who is involved in implementing the concepts at the institute. “Similar processes do not yet exist.” What is special about the software is that the researchers can flexibly change the parameters for each individual movement of the printing process.

They have already tested the new procedure in the laboratory. Two samples, one printed with conventional software, the other with the new technique, differ in their structure, as can be observed under the microscope. “There is also a difference in the properties, especially in the tensile strength across the direction of printing,” adds Miaozi Huang. “This method allows the weak points in the printed products to be eliminated.” For example, with this method it is possible to keep the contact temperatures between two strands in the optimal range for the respective moulded part geometry.

Such optimisations are important, for example, for increasing the service life of a component. The method used by the team from Kaiserslautern allows weak points in the plastic to be avoided.

https://www.uni-kl.de/

The Chemours Company a global chemistry company with leading market positions in Titanium Technologies, Thermal & Specialized Solutions, and Advanced Performance Materials, announced its participation leading a three-year recycling research project in collaboration with industry, academic, and government experts to develop an efficient, cost-effective, and more sustainable process for recovering titanium dioxide (TiO2) and polymers from plastic end-use products. The initiative, dubbed Remove2Reclaim, has the potential to drive significant environmental benefits, eliminating waste and reducing the amount of energy used in manufacturing, by enabling circularity across a much wider range of applications.

Current commercial scale recycling technologies do not allow polymers and additives to be effectively removed and separated, limiting the potential applications and overall quality of products made with recycled plastic. Remove2Reclaim is designed to change that. The project goal is to develop commercial-scale detection and extraction technologies that enable the removal and recovery of TiO2 and polymers for reuse.

“Through the Remove2Reclaim initiative, we hope to help crack the code on effective plastic recycling, achieving a new level of circularity for the industry,” said Steven De Backer, EMEA Technical Marketing Manager at Chemours. “This initiative has the potential to reclaim thousands of tons of TiO2 from different end-of-life streams, reducing raw material demands, and creating a new TiO2 supply stream for our customers. We’re honored to lead this project in collaboration with a team of experts from across the value chain to pursue a common goal that benefits our shared planet.”

In the project’s first year, research partners have developed a sorting mechanism to effectively identify plastic wastes that contain TiO2 and determined innovative solvent-based extraction routes to remove TiO2 from different polymer matrices. Other project milestones include developing methods and equipment to detect TiO2 in specific polymer matrices, recovering TiO2 from the polymer by dissolution route, and eventually reusing the TiO2 and polymer in new products.

“At Chemours, we aspire to be the most sustainable TiO2 enterprise in the world, and that requires applying our expertise to some of the world’s greatest challenges, including plastic circularity,” said Ed Sparks, President of Titanium Technologies at Chemours. “We’re committed to leveraging responsible chemistry and cross-industry collaboration to solve our customers’ challenges with minimal impact on our shared planet. Remove2Reclaim is a great example of this model at work.”

The Remove2Reclaim project kicked off in September 2020 with the support of Catalisti, the spearhead cluster for the chemical and plastics industry in Flanders, Belgium. It includes a collaboration of the public and private sectors, including Chemours as the project coordinator, INEOS Styrolution, Lybover, Deceuninck, Matco Plastics, Centexbel, VITO, Ghent University, and KU Leuven. The project also received funding from VLAIO, the Flanders Innovation and Entrepreneurship Agency.

“Remove2Reclaim is an exciting project with the potential to turn recycling ambitions into circular solutions that benefit our planet,” reads a statement from Catalisti. “By bringing together leaders in the industry, academic, and government spheres, we’re taking a holistic approach that engages the entire value chain. The project has gained momentum under Chemours’ leadership, and we’re looking forward to seeing this initiative continue making progress toward achieving its goal of producing an innovative new recycling process.”

https://www.chemours.com/

 Known for its role in developing technology that delivers more sustainable bottles, Amcor Rigid Packaging (ARP) is announcing ahead of National Packaging Design Day the creation and launch of PowerPostTM. By actively displacing the vacuum in the container after filling, PowerPost technology delivers a bottle nearly one-third lighter, with 30% energy reduction and 30% carbon savings over most 20 oz (600 ml) bottles available today. It also allows for up to 100% recycled material use and provides a superior consumer experience – no more spills from overflow when consumers first open their beverage.

PowerPost is the most advanced lightweighting technology for hot-fill beverages on the market today. PowerPost builds on Amcor’s patented, vacuum-absorbing technology PowerStrap™. The PowerPost base has two key technologies: an invertible, central post that actively displaces vacuum, and PowerStrap, the flexible ring surrounding the post. After filling, the post is inverted to actively displace vacuum inside the container and, as the product cools down, the surrounding ring flexes to passively absorb any remaining vacuum.

By eliminating the vacuum panels, PowerPost offers increased design freedom, premium appearance and consumer appeal, while addressing sustainability goals. Eliminating the panels in the body also drives operational improvements at the fillers. Bottle labels are applied more efficiently.

“Our engineers have developed technology that pushes the boundaries of lightweighting in the hot-fill arena to help our customers meet their cost and sustainability needs,” said Terry Patcheak, vice president of R&D, sustainability and project management at ARP. “This next-generation innovation will improve the consumer experience while addressing widespread commitments to reduce material use and lower greenhouse gas emissions.”

https://www.amcor.com/

Stratasys Ltd. A leader in polymer 3D printing solutions,  announced that the company has expanded its F123 Series™ of 3D printers with the introduction of the F190™CR and F370®CR 3D printers, plus new FDM® Nylon-CF10 material reinforced with carbon fiber. The new printers offer high stiffness and strength materials in a hardened machine ready for composite material printing.

 

The new composite 3D printers are designed for manufacturers and industrial machinists to supplement traditional fabrication technologies with high-strength composite 3D printing. The printers help manufacturers produce end use parts faster and more cost-effectively, and are ideal for jigs, fixtures and workholding tools.

“I’ve been working in engineering for over 35 years, and I love to innovate – not just in new product development but also in the processes and tools we use to develop our products. For more than 20 years Stratasys has allowed me to do just that through 3D printing,” said Dave Thompson, Vice President of Worldwide Engineering and Customer Care – Contractor Equipment Division for Graco, Inc. (NYSE: GGG), a global leader of fluid handling equipment based in Minneapolis and F370CR beta customer. “Over the years we have grown our fleet of Stratasys printers and expanded our applications beyond prototyping to tooling, fixtures and grippers for our robots. The new Stratasys F370CR printer will allow us to bring our AM applications to a new level, extend the life of our tools and even provide for a better surface finish.”

The new 3D printers include integrated GrabCAD Print™ software that provides a simple and intuitive CAD-to-print workflow and includes advanced features to ensure successful prints. Stratasys also provides enterprise application connectivity through the MTConnect standard and its GrabCAD Software Development Kit. The composite-ready F123 Series printers include reusable build trays, a built-in camera for remote monitoring and a 7-inch control touchscreen. The F370CR printer also offers auto-changeover of materials, which means there is no need to interrupt a build to replace materials – a new canister is simply put in place and the build continues.

“Stratasys is providing manufacturers with the 3D printers and materials to support the growth of additive manufacturing on the factory floor, including these new printers that give manufacturers the ability to build stronger, print stiffer and print more accurately,” said Dick Anderson, Senior Vice President, Manufacturing for Stratasys. “We have the verified and published data that proves these new printers have dimensional repeatability of up to 99% regardless of part size or geometric complexity. That, together with 99% uptime and unique service and support, gives manufacturers the confidence to accelerate their adoption of additive manufacturing.”

Compared to comparable competitive printers, the Stratasys composite-ready F123 Series of printers offer more material availability, a larger build volume, soluble support options and a lower cost-per-build volume due to the large oven size. Further, the larger, fully heated build chamber of the F190CR and F370CR printers, coupled with the ability to use stabilizer walls, allows manufacturers to build taller parts than could be printed in competitors machines.

Stratasys has also introduced FDM Nylon-CF10, a new composite material for the F123 Series printers that is over 60% stronger and nearly three times as stiff as its base nylon material. The chopped carbon fiber material is just one of many thermoplastic materials available for the F123 Series printers. When used with Stratasys soluble support, manufacturers have the ability to print any geometry without restriction. The F190CR and F370CR printers also support several other engineered thermoplastics.

http://www.stratasys.com/