May 18, 2017 | By Benedict
Oxford Performance Materials, an advanced materials and 3D printing company based in Connecticut, has launched a new 3D printing material. The nickel-plated OXFAB-Ni material can be used to make 3D printed PEKK-based parts for aerospace and industrial applications.
Designing a material that could replace high performance aluminum alloys is no mean feat, but that’s exactly what Oxford Performance Materials is attempting to do with OXFAB-Ni, its new PEKK (poly-ether-ketone-ketone) 3D printing material. The company thinks its new 3D printing formulation could replace aluminum alloys in the aerospace and industrial sectors.
Oxford Performance Materials says its new nickel-plated 3D printing material is “suited for highly demanding end-market aerospace, satellite, and defense applications where functional complexity and weight reduction can have a substantial and positive impact on performance.” It adds that the material can result in cost and energy savings for customers.
Although OXFAB-Ni is brand new, some of the material's contents will be familliar to Oxford Performance Materials clients. The main ingredient of OXFAB-Ni is the company’s proprietary PEKK formulation, OXPEKK, a high performance polymeric material that offers “robust mechanical performance, extreme temperature tolerance, high purity, gamma stability, and extremely high chemical resistance.”
OXFAB–Ni adds to these characteristics with a similar weight and strength to aluminum alloys, radiation shielding, “near limitless” shape options, and resistance up to 190°C.
“We are very pleased to commercially launch OXFAB-Ni as this proprietary technology builds on our existing product portfolio to provide our customers with a new high performance additive manufacturing solution,” said Lawrence Varholak, President of OPM Aerospace & Industrial.
A fan exit guide vane with 3D printed OXFAB-Ni plating
“With the launch of OXFAB–Ni, OPM can now offer our aerospace and industrial customers nickel-plated, fully functional end-use 3D printed structural parts with a flexural strength-to-weight ratio equivalent to high performance titanium alloys such as 6AL-4V.”
And Varholak can be proud of a busy year in 3D printing for Oxford Performance Materials overall. The company has been working with aerospace giant Boeing, making 3D printed parts for Boeing’s Starliner space taxis, while also making strides in the field of medical 3D printing. In March, the company gained a European patent for its 3D printed bone implant technology.
Oxford Performance Materials was founded in 2000 with the goal of “exploiting and commercializing the world’s highest performing thermoplastics.” The company’s Aerospace & Industrial division produces 3D printed OXFAB production parts for aerospace, satellite, and defense applications, while its Biomedical arm focuses on personalized medicine, spinal implants, and its 3D printed OsteoFab cranial and facial implants.
Posted in 3D Printing Materials
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