Polyjet 3D printing is one of the most advanced and versatile 3D printing technologies available today. This guide will provide an in-depth look at how polyjet printing works, its key benefits and applications, the materials it uses, top polyjet 3D printers, and service providers that offer polyjet printing.
What is Polyjet 3D Printing?
Polyjet 3D printing is a powerful production-grade technology that uses photopolymers and inkjet print heads to create highly detailed and accurate 3D printed parts. It was developed in the early 2000s by Objet Geometries, which later merged with Stratasys.
Polyjet printers have multiple print heads that jet tiny droplets of liquid photopolymer onto a build platform in ultra-thin layers. UV light instantly cures each layer, causing the photopolymer to solidify. The process repeats layer-by-layer until the 3D model is complete.
Key Benefits of Polyjet Printing
There are several key advantages that make polyjet a leading choice for 3D printing:
Exceptional Detail and Accuracy
Polyjet can print layers as thin as 16 microns, enabling it to produce very smooth surface finishes and capture intricate details. Parts have tight tolerances within 0.1 mm, making polyjet perfect for applications like jigs, fixtures, and prototypes that require precision.
Multi-Material Capabilities
Most polyjet printers have multiple print heads, allowing them to print using different materials and colors within the same build. This enables gradients, mixtures, and digital materials that have unique mechanical properties.
High-Quality Materials
Polyjet uses advanced photopolymer resins that simulate properties of plastics, elastomers, and resins. Materials include rigid opaque plastics, clear transparent resins, flexible and rubber-like elastomers, high temperature, and biocompatible options.
Fast Print Speeds
Polyjet printers can print up to three times faster than comparable 3D printing technologies. Prints that take hours on other printers can be produced within one hour on a polyjet machine.
No Supports Needed
Since liquid photopolymers easily flow and take shape, polyjet prints don’t require any support structures. This reduces material use and post-processing.
Range of Applications
The quality, accuracy, and material versatility of polyjet printing makes it a good fit for:
- Prototyping – Allows functional prototypes to be 3D printed with tight tolerances. Multi-material printing enables prototypes with both rigid and rubber-like components.
- Manufacturing – Polyjet is used to manufacture custom jigs, fixtures, guides, and end-use parts across aerospace, automotive, and consumer industries.
- Medical – Biocompatible materials allow customized surgical guides, orthodontic models, and medical device prototypes.
- Dental – Clear biocompatible resin enables dental aligners, bridges, and stone models. Digital materials mimic the look and feel of gums and teeth.
- Jewelry – Intricate personalized designs, rings, pendants can be produced in high resolution with silver/gold-like tinted resins.
- Education – Polyjet accurately prints detailed anatomical models for medical and biology students.
Polyjet 3D Printing Materials
Polyjet printers utilize advanced photopolymer resins that are precisely jetted and cured with UV light. Here are some of the main material classes used:
Rigid Opaque Plastics: Offer dimensional stability with high detail resolution. Ideal for functional prototypes and end-use parts. Examples are Vero family (in grey, white, black, blue colors) and Durus (high strength and temperature resistance).
Transparent Resins: Crystal clear material ideal for glass-like prints, lenses, housings, and conceptual models. Available as VeroClear and RGD720.
Rubber-like Resins: Flexible and stretchable like rubber. Used for gaskets, tubes, seals, grips, and overmolding onto rigid plastics. Main material families are Tango and Agilus.
Biocompatible Resins: Medical grade and sterilizable materials for surgical guides, dental, and medical devices. Key options are MED610, MED620.
Composite Materials: Combinations of rigid and flexible materials, such as rigid opaque mixed with rubber-like properties. Allows single-part assemblies.
Some printers also use ColorJet printing color binders to enable full-color capability. Hundreds of color combinations are possible by mixing base colors.
Top Polyjet Printers
Polyjet technology is available through various 3D printing companies including Stratasys, 3D Systems, and Xaar. Here are some of the most popular polyjet 3D printers:
Stratasys J835 – A high-end machine with exceptional detail and multi-material capabilities. Up to 7 materials can be combined in a print plus color combinations. Larger build size of 36 x 24 x 36 cm.
Stratasys J826 – Mid-range printer suited for design studios and educational institutions. Good accuracy and multi-material options. Build volume of 26 x 20 x 26 cm.
Stratasys J750 – One of the most advanced full color polyjet printers. Six base colors plus black and white. Detail resolution as low as 0.014 mm. Max build size of 49 x 39 x 20 cm.
Objet30 Pro – Desktop model with 11 material choices and small build size of 29 x 19.5 x 19.5 cm. Affordable starter printer for small offices and design teams.
Objet260 Dental Selection – Specialized dental 3D printer with biocompatible resins and HD print mode. Suitable for orthodontic appliances, clear aligners, models, and surgical guides.
Polyjet 3D Printing Services
If purchasing a polyjet 3D printer is not feasible, there are online services that offer professional polyjet printing:
Proto3000 – This online service has top-of-the-line Polyjet printers including the Stratasys J835 and Objet500. Services cater to both custom 3D printed parts as well as short-run manufacturing.
Stratasys Direct Manufacturing – Subsidiary of Stratasys that provides enterprise-level Polyjet printing for major companies. Large-scale production runs of end-use parts.
Xometry – Online manufacturing service that provides instant quotes for polyjet 3D printing. Ideal for prototyping and low volume production across a range of industries.
Sculpteo – Offers polyjet 3D printing that can combine multiple materials in a print. Part of BASF group, so wide range of technical and advanced materials.
Protolabs – Leading digital manufacturing service with Polyjet printers ideal for both prototypes and end-use applications. Can produce small batch orders.
Jiga Tech – Specialized Polyjet 3D printing service catering to medical and dental fields. Biocompatible and Digital ABS-like materials offered.
Polyjet Printing Costs
Polyjet printing costs are generally higher than FDM or SLA processes since it uses advanced photopolymer resins and specialized print heads. However, Polyjet offers quality and material properties unmatched by other 3D printing technologies.
Typical costs for polyjet printing through online services:
- Prototyping plastic parts: $2 – $6 per cubic inch
- High detail/multi-material parts: $6 – $12 per cubic inch
- Castable and dental resins: $8 – $16 per cubic inch
- End-use production runs: $1 – $4 per cubic inch
Larger build volumes and bulk orders can help lower overall costs. Desktop polyjet printers start around $10,000 while industrial printers exceed $100,000. Material costs are also higher than other 3D printing processes.
Polyjet 3D Printing vs SLA
Both Polyjet and Stereolithography (SLA) use liquid photopolymers cured by light. But there are some key differences:
- Polyjet jets tiny droplets while SLA uses a laser to cure resin point-by-point. This makes Polyjet faster.
- Polyjet has multi-material capabilities, allowing different resins and colors in one print. SLA printers typically use single material per print.
- Polyjet offers rubber-like resins. Most SLA resins are stiff and brittle.
- SLA has higher resolution and detail down to 25 microns vs 16 microns for Polyjet.
- Polyjet has closed-loop feedback for better accuracy and tolerances.
- Polyjet doesn’t require supports while SLA requires resin supports.
For ultra-high detail models, SLA has an edge. But Polyjet provides excellent resolution along with added versatility in terms of materials and speed.
Conclusion
Polyjet 3D printing leverages advanced inkjet print heads and photopolymers to create highly precise and versatile 3D printed parts. It excels at detailed prototypes, jigs and fixtures, medical models, and specialized applications like dental aligners.
Materials like rigid plastics, rubber-like resins and biocompatibles allow polyjet printing to mimic properties of real-world materials. The technology also enables multi-color and multi-material printing in a single build.
While polyjet 3D printers have a higher upfront cost, they offer strong capabilities for enterprises and manufacturers. It’s also possible to utilize professional polyjet printing services to get affordable access to these cutting-edge 3D printing capabilities. For applications requiring fine feature detail, smooth surface finishes, dimensional accuracy, and material flexibility – polyjet is an ideal rapid manufacturing solution.
