ColorFabb, constantly innovating with its strong R&D capabilities, is once again making an impact on the 3D printing world! What's new this time?
What exactly is nGen?
nGen is a 3D printing filament developed by Eastman Chemical. It is made from Amphora™ AM3300 polymer, with ColorFabb's opaque, high-brightness colorants added. nGen 3D printing material is a styrene-free filament with low printing odor, making it particularly suitable for flexible objects requiring a wide operating temperature range in 3D printing. It boasts better melt flow at lower printing temperatures compared to other polymers, allowing for a broader range of printable nozzle temperatures, reliable print quality, and reduced waste. It also gives printed objects a wider range of usable temperatures.
Filaments made with Amphora 3300 offer excellent bridging capabilities, good aesthetic performance, a wide printing temperature range, and good heat resistance, enabling users to quickly create durable, functional, and visually appealing objects.
Why choose nGen? What are its features?
Today, 3D printing has many applications: self-replication, tool manufacturing, prototype production, design review, entertainment... No matter how you want to use your 3D printer, you need the right filament. Sometimes you might need objects with a good appearance, sometimes you need functionality, so why not have both?
With nGen, we can print objects that are both functional and visually stunning! It's like a dream come true!
Moreover, it has a glass transition temperature of up to 85 °C, almost double that of PLA!
Melt Stability:
A major feature of nGen is its good melt stability. This means that from plastic pellets to filament, and then to the printed product, the mechanical properties of the material remain almost unchanged. This means you can print objects with consistently stable quality, time after time.
Applications:
What applications can the heat-resistant and durable nGen be used for?
Home Applications
Consumer Electronics
Toys
Prototyping
Model Design
Optical Applications
Medical Applications
How to Print:
Below are some parameters you can use when printing nGen with certain machines. If your machine is not listed, you can still refer to these values!
Heated Bed
nGen is suitable for printing on a heated bed. The recommended bed temperature is between 75C and 85C. If your machine does not have a heated bed, it is recommended to use blue tape or a glue stick, although warping may still occur if the printed object has a large base area.
Print Temperature
The print temperature will be set according to layer thickness and print speed. Generally, for a layer thickness of 0.2mm and a print speed of 50mm/s, the recommended print temperature is 220C to 240C. If using a very thin layer thickness, such as 0.05mm, the print temperature can be lowered slightly.
Bridging
Most slicing software allows setting of speed, cooling, and even flow during bridging. It is recommended to slow down the print speed during bridging to prevent the unsupported overhang from being damaged by the fast-moving nozzle. Slowing down the print speed also helps maintain melt strength and allows the filament time to cool in mid-air.
A fan setting of 100% can help the first layer cool better.
If the melt is still being damaged after applying the above settings, try increasing the flow or the perimeter of the bridge.
Retraction
Before adjusting retraction, please ensure you have found suitable printing temperatures and speeds for your machine. PLA retraction settings are a good starting point for various machines.
The Coasting feature allows the nozzle to stop extruding material before moving, reducing pressure buildup and making retraction more efficient.
Minimum Layer Time
This function allows each layer of filament a certain amount of time to cool, but how much time to set depends on the properties of the filament. With nGen filament, the manufacturer estimates that the minimum layer time can be shorter than with PLA, but the exact time still depends on the cooling efficiency of your machine.
ColorFabb - nGen: A new 3D printing filament with both functionality and striking aesthetics! It's super fun!
Source: http://ngen.colorfabb.com/what/