Germany-based Schunk Carbon Technology has opted for Anisoprint’s Composite Fibre Co-Extrusion (CFC) technology in printing new tools and demonstrators. The technology will allow them to customise tools for their production workflow with Anisoprint’s Composer platform. In doing so, Schunk Carbon becomes another Anisoprint partner much like BMW and Brightlands Material Center.
Schunk Carbon is a subdivision of the Schunk Group that specialises in development, manufacture and application of carbon and ceramic solutions. The company specialises in all sorts of compounds for clients all over the world in construction, automation etc. They deliver components in graphite, carbon, silicon carbide and quartz for high temperature applications. Schunk Carbon’s 3D printing applications will allow for all sorts of high endurance thermoplastic parts.
“We are using the Anisoprint Composer for printing demonstrators and tools for our production,” commented Gotthard Nauditt, R&D Engineer Composites at Schunk Carbon Technology. “The Composer does a good job. It [is] precise and reliable and, together with its slicing software, Aura, it forms a capable tool.”
Anisoprint’s Composer Platform
The Composer series of machines consists of the A3 and A4 models boasting build volumes of 420 x 297 mm and 297 x 210 mm respectively. Both machines, together, are able to print composite carbon fibre (CCF) and composite basalt fibre (CBF) materials. These allow for the printing of strong and lightweight parts in thermoplastic polymers with “continuous fibre reinforcement, consolidated and cured within a single-stage fully automated process that does not require post processing or tooling“.
The machines also use a two-matrix (thermoset+thermoplastic) approach. The company states that this aids in keeping a low porosity while good maintaining adhesion of fiber to polymer parts. Anisoprint’s technology brings in a 60 micron minimum layer thickness, which is unsurprising considering the industries that make use of the platform.
Based in Luxembourg, Anisoprint have been crucial in providing high-strength alternatives to metal. For example, Anisoprint’s CCF material can outdo the strength-to-weight ratio of 2024-T351 Aluminium, allegedly up to 5 times higher. Similarly, CBF boasts a strength-to-weight ration twice as high as its metal alternative. Schunk Carbon’s 3D printing operations will likely harness the A3 and A4 printers for prints with these impressive characteristics.
Featured image courtesy of Anisoprint.