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Interview with Ralph van der Borst of colorFabb

A long long time ago Ralph and I were part of the super fun super crazy, hard-working rollercoaster that was Philips spinout Shapeways. Ralph was great to work with, a no-nonsense guy who got stuff done. He was supposed to do some IT stuff then did supply chain stuff and then web stuff and then was managing customer service and later on became the HR manager of the startup. It was hectic but Ralph was a rock during all of the crazy storms and constant scaling. I was happy to learn that after leaving 3D Printing for a while Ralph was back in the industry, working in business development for colorFabb. Dutch filament maker colorFabb is a real innovator in making new kinds of filament such as their metal filled filaments and their color on-demand technology. I really wanted to find out what Ralph was up to so we interviewed him.

What do people find difficult about 3D printing?

3D printing in general. What you can do but most importantly what you can’t do. A lot of people are still not familiar with the technique and what it can do for them. Those who are aware, have challenges in designing for the specific materials. We are still at the forefront of this new industrial revolution. In order to achieve mass adoption, we need to wait for software tools to get easier or for our mobile phones to get 3D cameras which will allow us to take a picture and have it converted into a 3D print file on the spot.

What has changed in 3D printing since you’ve gotten involved?

A lot actually especially in the ease of use. Desktop 3D printers have evolved a lot over the past years. The same goes for industrial printers. Tray sizes have increased, printing time reduced. We have also witnessed the rise of new materials (Carbon fiber, 18 karat gold, Porcelain, conductive materials, stainless steel and aluminum). All of this wasn’t possible or- widely available when I started in 2008. Besides this we have seen an increase in general awareness of what 3D printing is.

I can’t be the only one to have closely studied colorFabb’s spooling equipment to find out who their supplier was.

What is holding 3D printing back? 

Simplicity, general knowledge, costs, accessibility and the learning curve. An easy way for people to make a 3D print file who are not familiar with 3D printing would help a lot. Right now you need to have technical knowledge before you can start printing. Although we see a decrease in costs it is sometimes still cheaper to buy, let’s say an iPhone case, instead of 3D printing it.

What common errors do you see? 

Wrong expectations about what 3D printing can and can’t achieve. Design flaws. Models having thin walls, non-manifold issues etc. You will need to design your model specifically for the material you would like to have it in. Not having the correct printer settings for desktop printers is also a common mistake.

What are you excited about in 3D printing? 

The future of it. Mass adoption. Other specific things such as the 3D printing of DNA strings excite me as well. Low costs customized prosthetics is another area. This 4th industrial revolution is going to be life-changing.

Why did you join colorFabb?

For several reasons actually. In the world of filaments colorFabb materials are considered to be the best ones when it comes to quality. colorFabb is in the forefront producing these new materials in house, which is awesome to be a part of. This in combination with the high energy environment, the awesome colleagues, the mission & vision of the company and the growth the company is going through, made it an easy decision.

What is colorFabb?

colorFabb was founded by Ruud Rouleaux, CEO of Helian Polymers in 2012. With extensive knowledge of the (bio)plastics industry, colorants and additives it was a logical next step for him to explore opportunities in the world of 3D printing. After rigorous testing and experimenting in the fall and winter of 2012 a new grade of PLA (PLA/PHA) was developed and it became commercially available in March 2013.

Later in 2013 the first special filament, woodFill, was launched. Half a year later a truly unique material was developed: bronzeFill, the first filament with actual bronze particles in it resulting in truly stunning prints when post-processed.

2014 also saw the expansion in production from one production line to four (currently 7), as well as the move to a new building. More important, colorFabb announced its joint development agreement with Eastman Chemical Company in September of that year, which has resulted so far in four grades of filaments, based on Eastman’s Amphora 3D Polymer range of materials.

Due to the rapid growth of the 3D printing market colorFabb has been expanding its production capacities, logistics department and team ever since the beginning. The colorFabb team consists of extrusion operators ensuring quality control, a logistics department that ships to over 100 countries worldwide every year, 3D print engineers who test all filaments and many more professionals. All of them dedicated to the quality and service the colorFabb brand is known for.

Why should I buy colorFabb filament? 

colorFabb has established itself as a market leader through the release of innovative materials, high-quality production and strategic partnerships (Ninjatek, Stacker, Eastman, Covestro). We are often the first to bring new materials (Bronzefill and LW-PLA) and Color on Demand (RAL) where customers can purchase the RAL color they want and need in PLA as from one 750gram spool. colorFabb is unique in the world by offering this service.

What exciting new products are you offering?

Our latest release is called Light Weight -PLA. LW-PLA is the first filament of its kind using an active foaming technology to achieve lightweight, low-density PLA parts. At around 230C this material will start foaming, increasing its volume by nearly 3 times. Users can decrease material flow by 65% to achieve lightweight parts, or use the expanding properties to effectively reduce print time by using big layer heights or single extra thick perimeters.

Are you focusing more in the desktop or on the industrial market?

Both markets are not mutually exclusive. We see a wide adoption of FDM desktop printers in a lot of companies and industries looking for material solutions which colorFabb can offer.

Why did you move more into offering 3D printers also? 

  • We feel that offering a complete package has added value. colorFabb as a company in focusing on these 3 pillars as their business model:

  • Materials (Filaments)

  • Hardware (3D printers)

  • Application center (Design/3D print services)

What is happening in the filament market?

More diversity and focus on functional filaments by an ever more demanding market.

Will PLA stay our most popular filament? 

It is an easy to use filament that works on practically all printers. It will therefore remain the go-to filament for a lot of users. However, due to increasing demand for more functionality (which PLA lacks) there will be other contenders for the pro-users. It is hard to asses which material that will be. In general we are focusing on custom made filaments which can be used by our customers for all kind of purposes.

Will FDM switch to granulate? 

Maybe for large scale models. For the desktop industry we don’t see the granulate replacing FDM because of the level of control needed over the flow of the material.

The post Interview with Ralph van der Borst of colorFabb appeared first on 3DPrint.com | The Voice of 3D Printing / Additive Manufacturing.

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Apium Researchers Explore Hydrophobic & Hydrophilic 3D Printed Surfaces

While the fascination with 3D printing and all its assorted magic—from software to hardware to a plethora of emerging materials—continues, plenty of criticism still abounds too. And from this springs also an outpouring of discussion and analysis regarding what the technology is best suited for, and what types of textures and materials are strong enough, flexible enough, durable enough, and more, as all it depends on what you are trying to make. Car enthusiasts are busy rebuilding vintage luxury cars, students are making chess sets, designers are fabricating bold fashions, architects are building brick installations, and astronauts are busy bioprinting in space. That’s a lot of ideas being put into motion, and a lot of materials being put into 3D printers around the world. But what about how moisture, or lack of moisture affects these materials?

Recently, Apium researchers spent hours testing the basics in 3D printing materials, publishing ‘Hydrophobic and Hydrophilic Surfaces of 3D Printed Parts.’ Defining hydrophobic (repels water) and hydrophilic (mixes with or dissolves in water), the team from Apium decided to look at varying solutions to ongoing criticisms about the textures of 3D printed parts, mainly with polymer materials. In discussing the relevance of both hydrophobic and hydrophilic qualities, the researchers state:

“There are two entities responsible for this attribute in all free surfaces:

  1. A chemical factor which relates to the nature of chemical charges on the surface; if the charges on the surface are predominantly non-polar then such a surface will repel water molecules which is polar in nature due to the partial charges between its atoms whilst for the surface which are polar like water, they form ionic and/or hydrogen bonds with water permitting the residency of water on such surfaces.
  2. A physical factor which relates to the kind and nature of structure on the surface. The length-scale and geometry of the texture, asperity, topography of the surface either permits water to spread and wet the surface or that water remains suspended and cushioned by air molecules on such a surface thus preventing the wetting of the surface. A typical example of this phenomena is observed on the leaf of the Lotus plant hence the Lotus-Effect which describes a rather extreme case of non-wetting surfaces.”

Further, the contact angle is a measure of either the hydrophilicity or the hydrophobicity of a surface. Contact angles from 0 to 90 degrees are hydrophilic, while those with contact angles greater than 90 degrees are hydrophobic. ‘Super hydrophobicity’ happens at a contact angle over 150 degrees. Study of all three types of angles is helpful to both science and engineering applications, and especially in engineering of materials where either wetting or non-wetting is sought after. The researchers point out that hydrophobic effects are induced in:

  • Wall coatings and paints
  • Mechanisms to stop bio-fouling
  • New forms of fabrics and textiles
  • Engineered glass surfaces

Hydrophilics are used for:

  • Harvesting and storing condensation
  • Enhancing liquid transport systems
  • Minimizing evaporation in certain environments

During this research, the team used the Apium Material Extrusion 3D Printer. They state that the P220 model can process most high-performance polymeric materials.

“Most of these materials are used in applications where unique properties are required from materials,” said the researchers. “For the first time we show the wetting properties of these materials in the as-3D printed forms.”

“The contact angles of the 3D printed materials namely Carbon Fibre Reinforced (CFR) PEEK, Black colored PEEK, PVDF, POM-C, Polypropylene (PP) and Ultem (PEI) were measured in accordance to Ref.  but with direct measurements of the angles acquired from an image profile of a sessile drop of water using a simple hand-held protractor.”

Results were as follows:

  • Apium PEEK 450 Black – hydrophobic, difficult for uses in applications such as bone implants due to bonding/adhesive issues. This material is created with natural PEEK and black pigments.
  • Apium CFR PEEK (30 percent) – hydrophilic, and made of natural PEEK filled with 30 percent vol. micro carbon fiber.
  • Apium PDVF 1000 – a hydrophilic fluoropolymer belonging to the same family as Teflon. This material is weather-resistant, as well as UV- and radiation-resistant.
  • Apium PP – available from 2019 on, this is a hydrophilic material also.

“Clearly, the natural wetting properties of these materials are retained in their 3D printed forms with Apium P220 Series 3D Printers,” state the researchers.

Find out more about Apium and their products and research here. What do you think of this news? Let us know your thoughts! Join the discussion of this and other 3D printing topics at 3DPrintBoard.com.

[Source / Images: ‘Hydrophobic and Hydrophilic Surfaces of 3D Printed Parts’]