FreeFoam unexpanded and expanded automotive
After teasing its latest 3D printing technology at RAPID + TCT last month, Desktop Metal has officially unveiled FreeFoam, a new photopolymer resin designed for additive manufacturing durable closed cell foam parts without tooling.
The material, developed by Texas-based Adaptive3D, which was acquired by Desktop Metal last year, is expected to ‘liberate the foam market from its many challenges,’ and is thought to be well suited to applications in automotive, furniture, footwear, sporting goods, and health care industries. The company says the material is already being put to work by customers in the automotive and furnishing markets.
“FreeFoam is one of the most exciting and commercially significant photopolymer solutions to come to market in the industrial printing space in years,” said Ric Fulop, Founder and CEO of Desktop Metal. “The market for conventionally manufactured foam has many challenges – from expensive moulds that limit designs, to dense and heavy foams that absorb water and are expensive to ship and drive, to the inability to easily dial in strength and Shore hardness values in specific foam designs.”
FreeFoam parts are created using a DLP process. Printed parts contain dispersed heat-activated foaming agents that create closed cell pores inside the material. Once printed, parts are heat process at approximately 160-170°C to expand to 2 to 7 times their size, depending on the grade of resin. This means manufacturers can pack more parts into a printer’s build area and ship parts at smaller sizes, ready for expansion closer to the point of need.
FreeFoam is set to become widely available in 2023 and will initially only be 3D printable on the Desktop Metal’s ETEC Xtreme 8K top-down DLP system. While preliminary specifications for FreeFoam are now available, Desktop Metal says it plans to offer several grades with different Shore hardness values and other specific materials properties such as water resistance.
