The Rise of Silicone 3D Printer: A Game Changer for Prototyping and Manufacturing

Silicone 3D printing is an emerging technology that is poised to revolutionize prototyping and small-scale manufacturing. As a flexible, durable material with a wide array of applications, silicone has long been a staple in product design and manufacturing. However, working with silicone using traditional methods can be time-consuming and expensive. 3D printing with silicone promises to change that by enabling fast, affordable silicone part production.

In this post, we’ll explore the benefits of silicone 3D printing, examine the types of silicone 3D printers currently on the market, look at ideal use cases, and consider what the future may hold for this technology.

Benefits of Silicone 3D Printing

Why consider silicone for your 3D printing needs? Here are some of the key advantages this material offers:

• Flexible and stretchable – Silicone can bend, compress, stretch, and flex making it perfect for products that need a soft, rubbery finish. This includes items like wristbands, gaskets, grips, and flexible joints.
• Durability – Silicone holds up well over time. It resists decomposition, abrasion, temperature extremes and UV radiation better than many common 3D printing filaments.
• Industrial/food-safe – Some silicones are FDA-approved for food contact and medical device applications. This makes silicone ideal for kitchenware, baby products, and other goods.
• Smooth surface finish – Silicone 3D printed objects have a naturally glossy, smooth surface right out of the printer, without any post-processing required.
• Chemical resistance – Uncured silicone withstands exposure to oils, greases, and solvents. This makes it suitable for products that will come into contact with chemicals.
• Simple post-processing – Silicone parts can be easily cleaned, cured, colored, or modified after printing with minimal effort.
• Detailed/complex geometries – Low viscosity silicone materials can produce intricate designs with thin walls, fine features, and complex internal structures.

By leveraging these properties, designers can 3D print silicone prototypes faster and more affordably compared to traditional manufacturing methods. Small production runs also become more accessible. Next, let’s look at the types of silicone 3D printers on the market that make this possible.

Silicone 3D Printers Currently Available

Silicone 3D printing technology is still in its early stages. There are a handful of companies pioneering the development of silicone 3D printers, materials, and processes. Here are some of the leading silicone 3D printer options available today:

Formlabs Elastic Resin

One of the first widely available silicone 3D printing systems came from Formlabs, a well-known name in desktop SLA 3D printing. In 2018, Formlabs introduced their Elastic Resin for printing flexible silicone parts.

Elastic Resin is compatible with Formlabs’ SLA printers, including the Form 3 and Form 3L. It cures into a durable, rubber-like material with 50A shore hardness. The resin can stretch up to 260% of its original size.

Finished parts have a smooth, glossy finish right off the print bed. Elastic Resin also offers high feature resolution down to 0.2mm details.

Carbon M Series

Carbon introduced their elastic silicone resin in 2017. The fast curing material is engineered specifically for Carbon’s M Series DLS printers.

Printed parts have uniform mechanical properties in all directions. Carbon’s silicone resin can achieve 75A to 85A shore hardness after post-curing based on the selected print parameters.

The material is capable of up to 370% elongation at break. Resolution is 120μm for this resin. The M Series printers and silicone resin allow these properties to be dialed in across a single printed part.

Nexa3D NXE400

At CES 2020, Nexa3D showcased their new silicone printing capabilities. Using Lubrizol’s proprietary silicone materials, the Nexa3D NXE400 can deliver functional silicone parts with durometers now ranging from A30 to A95.

The NXE400 features a build volume of 4 x 2.1 x 5.9 inches. It leverages a new Lubrizol photocuring process to deliver detailed prints at speeds up to 1-2 cm per hour. The printer uses pre-filled silicone cartridges for simple material swaps.

Wacker Silicone 3D Printing

Wacker Chemie AG partnered with printer manufacturer Voxeljet to develop a silicone 3D printing system in 2018. Through a specialized Liquid Silicone Rubber (LSR) material and process, they can produce platinum-catalyzed silicone parts.

The ACEO Imagine Series printers use a multi-step silicone curing process after print. Parts feature high elasticity, low shrinkage, and can be surface finished with a proprietary lacquer from Wacker.

Admatec Admaflex 130

Netherlands-based Admatec focuses specifically on advanced silicone 3D printing. Their Admaflex 130 system uses a patented Selective Liquid Deposition Modeling (SLDM) process optimized for high-performance silicone.

Admaflex printers have a build volume of 220 x 220 x 300 mm. They can print functional silicone prototypes with hardness from 20 Shore A to 70 Shore D. The printer has a minimum feature size of 250 microns.

Admatec also offers an array of specialized silicone materials beyond basic resins. This includes silicone elastomers, medical grade silicone, high/low temperature silicones, and wear resistant compounds.

Spectroplast SiliShape

German silicone specialists Spectroplast have developed a customizable silicone 3D printing system called SiliShape. The extrusion-based process can print platinum or peroxide cured silicone with adjustable hardness.

Build volume reaches 500 x 500 x 100 mm with a minimum layer height of 100 microns. Functional prototypes can be produced within several hours. The company also provides silicone molding and casting services.

SiliX3D

Spain-based SiliX3D created an open material 3D printer capable of processing high performance silicones. The system uses specialized platens with elastic properties to print flexible materials like LSRs.

Print resolution reaches 150 microns. Durometers between 10-90 Shore A can be achieved with hardness tuning. The printer has a modest build volume at 64 x 64 x 76 mm, but enables research-level experimentation with silicone 3D printing.

Ideal Applications for Silicone 3D Printing

The range of materials, print processes, and properties enables silicone 3D printing to target diverse applications. Here are some of the major use cases where silicone 3D printing delivers the most value:

• Medical product prototyping – Silicone is biocompatible and commonly used in medical devices. Being able to rapidly 3D print silicone parts like vain holders, handles, masks, and grips accelerates medical product development.
• Consumer product prototypes – Silicone lends itself well to consumer products that need to be soft, flexible, and safe. Items like bottle grips, remote control skins, jar openers, and other household items can be quickly iterated as 3D printed silicone prototypes.
• Custom cushions & pads – The elasticity and cushioning properties of silicone make it a natural fit for creating custom cushions, pads, supports, and grips tailored to an individual. 3D scanning combined with silicone printing facilitates this.
• Robotic parts – The flexibility and durability of silicone makes it an alternative to natural rubber for robotic components like O-rings, seals, and grippers. Silicone stands up to oils and solvents better than many 3D printed plastics.
• Gastronomy – From baking molds to bottle teats to food props, silicone 3D printing gives chefs and mixologists new capabilities for experimenting with soft, flexible culinary tools. Food safety compliance is also easier to achieve.
• Effects & props – The realistic texture and appearance of 3D printed silicone lends itself nicely to special effects and theatrical props mimicking skin, creatures, veins, and other simulated effects.
• Rapid manufacturing – While production runs with silicone 3D printing are still limited in scale, the technology enables faster, lower-cost short run manufacturing for niche silicone products.

With this range of prototyping, end-use part, and experimental applications, silicone 3D printing provides new design latitude not easily achievable through other means. As the capabilities continue to evolve, so will the applications.

The Future of Silicone 3D Printers

Silicone 3D printing is still in its early days, but advancing rapidly. Here are some exciting developments on the horizon that will expand the possibilities of silicone 3D printing even further:

• New silicone materials – Material suppliers like Wacker and Dow Chemical are actively developing customized silicone formulations optimized for 3D printing. This will result in an expanded range of shore hardnesses, improved tear and tensile strength, higher heat resistance, easier post-processing, and more material options targeted to different applications.
• Faster print speeds – Currently silicone printing is slower than many conventional plastics, ranging from 1-100mm/hour maximum print speeds. As print processes mature, achieving print speeds comparable to FDM and SLA for small silicone parts should be possible. This will make silicone more competitive for batch production.
• Larger build volumes – Current generations of silicone 3D printers top out at around 8 inches cubic build area. By adopting large-bed stereolithography and material extrusion techniques used in other industries, build volumes will continue to expand.
• Multi-material printing – Combining silicone with other resins and thermoplastics on the same build platform will allow composite materials and material properties impossible through conventional means.
• Improved material properties – Layer bonding, edge strength, tear resistance, and other material properties and quality metrics lag behind conventional silicone fabrication methods but will rapidly catch up as R&D continues.
• Expanded applications – The intersection of new materials, faster printing, and larger build volumes will enable silicone 3D printing for applications like mass customization, industrial component fabrication, and end-use part production that are not feasible today.

Conclusion

Silicone 3D printing ushers in an era that breaks down many of the historic barriers working with this unique polymer. The ability to rapidly prototype and iteratively test silicone parts opens up new design possibilities. Small-scale manufacturing with silicone also becomes feasible like never before.

With expanded material options, refined printing processes, and larger build volumes, expect silicone 3D printing to become a mainstay manufacturing method across industries like medical, consumer products, food, effects, robotics, and more. Silicone 3D printing reduces costs and unlocks new applications while retaining the much-loved properties of this versatile material.