{"id":161311,"date":"2020-11-04T15:30:11","date_gmt":"2020-11-04T07:30:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/facfox.com\/?post_type=kb&p=161311"},"modified":"2020-11-04T15:30:11","modified_gmt":"2020-11-04T07:30:11","slug":"is-rubber-3d-printing-possible-and-do-we-have-alternatives","status":"publish","type":"kb","link":"https:\/\/facfox.com\/docs\/kb\/is-rubber-3d-printing-possible-and-do-we-have-alternatives","title":{"rendered":"Is Rubber 3D Printing Possible and Do We Have Alternatives?"},"content":{"rendered":"

As designers continue to grapple with the possibility of 3D printing rubber, we tell you whether it is achievable or not and go into detail discussing alternative rubber-like 3D printing materials.<\/p>\n

Is it possible to 3D print the rubber? No.<\/p>\n

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Why not?<\/p>\n

Rubber is an organic material whose properties cannot be influenced by external factors. The fact that rubber undergoes vulcanization \u2014 to improve its elasticity and strength \u2014 implies that it can never again exist in a fluid state. Vulcanization makes rubber solid and ensures it holds its shape. Any process of reheating it will cause it to burn.<\/p>\n

Therefore, the mere fact that rubber cannot become fluid is the reason why it is impossible to 3D print rubber.<\/p>\n

In this article, we explore rubber-like 3D printing materials that are excellent alternatives for those who want to 3D print rubber. In particular, we discuss how to print them and list some common examples. Although we\u2019ll primarily focus on flexible filaments, we\u2019ll also take a quick look at flexible resins.<\/p>\n

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Two prints made in soft PLA. Source: MatterHackers<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Rubber-Like 3D Printing Materials: Flexible Filaments<\/h2>\n
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A wrench printed in TPU.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Thankfully, there are rubber-like 3D printing materials that will make you feel like you are about to 3D print rubber. The most common ones are filaments made of thermoplastic elastomers (TPEs). TPEs can be used for several applications, some of which include shoe soles, flip-flops, and industrial applications like sealing rings.<\/p>\n

Initially, printing flexible filaments caused designers a lot of trouble. That\u2019s because these filaments were too soft, and whenever they went through a 3D printer, they didn\u2019t print as expected.<\/p>\n

Most extruders had the \u201cpushing string effect\u201d: Whenever a filament with no rigidity was pushed towards the nozzle, the filament bent or twisted because it was too soft. Thanks to the introduction of direct drive extruders, it\u2019s now possible to print flexible filaments.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s important to note that flexible filament is a general give to flexible, rubber-like filaments coming from many different manufacturers. The formulas for these filaments vary from one manufacturer to another.<\/p>\n

Rubber-Like 3D Printing Materials: Flexible Resins<\/h2>\n
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A flexible watchband.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Apart from flexible filaments, the flexible resin can also be used to produce rubber-like prints. Flexible resins are a perfect choice when you want to develop or prototype highly precise flexible parts like gaskets, custom grips, stamps, and wearables, or when you want to add ergonomic features to your assemblies.<\/p>\n

When printed, flexible resin feels just like rubber and will usually compress, \u201cbouncing back\u201d to their original form. The main drawback is that resins are normally designed for specific printers.<\/p>\n

Here are three examples of flexible resin:<\/p>\n