The disruptive 3D printing technology Hot Lithography with highperformance polymers for the Additive Manufacturing of spare parts and small series of functional parts

Project Information

Hot Lithography

Grant agreement ID: 872914

DOI

10.3030/872914

Project closed

EC signature date 24 July 2019

Start date 1 August 2019

End date 31 December 2021

Funded under

• INDUSTRIAL LEADERSHIP - Innovation In SMEs

Total cost

€ 2 560 555,00

EU contribution

€ 1 792 388,50

Coordinated by

F. & G. HACHTEL GMBH & CO. KG
Germany

Periodic Reporting for period 2 - Hot Lithography (The disruptive 3D printing technology Hot Lithography with highperformance polymers for the Additive Manufacturing of spare parts and small series of functional parts)

Reporting period: 2020-08-01 to 2021-12-31

Summary of the context and overall objectives of the project

Individualised and complex parts increase the challenge of spare part procurement. Currently, it is a huge problem to maintain costly appliances, like trains or complex machines, if there are no more spare parts stocked and the original supplier fails. Additive manufacturing (AM) can solve these problems and produce small batches cost-efficient, with short lead times, and without individualised tools. Unfortunately, conventional AM methods are limited in their technical and economic capabilities. There has been no polymer AM solution on the market which is cost-efficient and produces components with sufficiently good overall material quality to fulfil industrial requirements.
Cubicure’s Hot Lithography now meets these demands. By using highly viscous, high-performance photopolymers, unmet material properties are achieved. The patented printing technology to process such resins exploits the high precision of lithography. Hachtel is the first industrial user of this technology and provides a complete integrated procurement solution: the digitalisation of the original part, optimisation, cost-efficient AM of high-quality parts and the widely underestimated part qualification by industrial computer tomography.
The European printing market grows with 25% to about USD 15bn until 2023. Corporations, like Siemens and Deutsche Bahn are actively searching for AM suppliers for a fast, cost-efficient and qualified procurement of individualised, complex and efficient components. Furthermore, other applications with complex part geometries and small to medium production volumes are addressed like the additive manufacturing of electric connectors and nozzles.
By introducing this disruptive innovation, Hachtel can boost its existing business and ensure a future company growth. Cubicure will be able to further optimise its products for the industry and prove the high technological impact.

Work performed from the beginning of the project to the end of the period covered by the report and main results achieved so far

During the project several new photopolymers with enhanced properties for Hot Lithography were developed by Cubicure:
1) “Evolution FR”, the first UL94 VO-classified photopolymer.
2) A flame-retardant revision of the first “Thermoblast” formulation, a revolutionary high temperature material with great mechanical stiffness which can withstand ambient conditions up to 300°C.
3) “Evolution HI”, a versatile material for all applications which need to resist repeated stress. This photopolymer even rivals conventional ABS.
4) INFINAM® FL 6300 L, an industrially suitable elastomer, which enables the 3D printing of highly flexible objects with a photopolymer.
Furthermore, Hot Lithography was certified as AM process by TÜV Austria. The 3D printing system Caligma was brought to market readiness and is used by first customers for small series production. The pilot production plant Cerion was introduced into the market in November 2021. Cerion enables industrial series printing of polymer parts. With its completely novel printing head, the 3D printing system toollessly builds components in a scalable manner. Each layer is created in less than 90 seconds, regardless of the complexity and number of components.
In parallel, Hachtel optimised the integrated procurement process including the digitalisation and qualification by FEM and industrial CT. Several pilot projects were already performed by the companies to provide spare parts e.g. for German and Swiss railway companies. First customers were won, for spare-parts, but also for small and medium-series production of functional parts, like electric connectors or microfluid nozzles.

Progress beyond the state of the art and expected potential impact (including the socio-economic impact and the wider societal implications of the project so far)

The successful development of the revolutionary photopolymers by Cubicure and their exceptional flame-retardancy marks not only the first project milestone but is the basis to drive forward the use of additive manufacturing of polymers in new applications and markets. We use the technical progress of Hot Lithography far beyond the state of the art to introduce Additive Manufacturing into new areas like manufacturing complex, electronic connectors or in microfluid applications.
With the approach of using high molecular and therefore highly viscous, high-performance photopolymers, unmet material properties can be achieved. The patented printing technology to process such viscous resins exploits the high precision and surface quality of lithographic methods. Hachtel is the first pure industrial user of Hot Lithography for additive manufacturing of functional components and provides customers a complete integrated procurement solution: the digitalisation of the original part, engineering and optimisation, cost-efficient additive manufacturing of high-quality parts and the subsequent and widely underestimated part qualification. Hachtel and Cubicure cover the complete integrated process chain from the digitalisation of the original part, up to the qualified, optimised, and functional (spare) part produced by the innovative 3D printing technology Hot Lithography.
The realisation of Cerion is the essential breakthrough in the industrial upscaling of lithographic printing processes. In Cerion's printing process, both the material intake and the detaching of printed polymer layers from the carrier film are scalable. Many factors of the building process such as process forces are now decoupled from part geometry and building platform occupancy. Even the width and length of the printing platform no longer have an influence on process performance. This milestone in the AM technology will enable industrial series production of AM polymer parts.

HOT LITHOGRAPHY - The disruptive Hot Lithography 3D printing technology