SOULUBLE MATERIAL AND PROCESS FOR THREE-DIMENSIONAL MODELING

• US 20100270707A1
• Filed: 07/09/2010
• Published: 10/28/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 04/20/1999
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Stratasys Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Stratasys Incorporated
• Inventors: Priedeman, William R. JR., Brosch, Andrea L.
• Granted Patent: US 8,227,540 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 264/308
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 41/08 Coating a former, core or other substrate by spraying or fluidisation, e.g. spraying powder spray-up of reinforcing fibres B29C70/305
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 41/36 Feeding the material on to the mould, core or other substrate
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 41/50 Shaping under special conditions, e.g. vacuum
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 64/106 using only liquids or viscous materials, e.g. depositing a continuous bead of viscous material
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 64/118 using filamentary material being melted, e.g. fused deposition modelling [FDM]
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 64/40 Structures for supporting 3D objects during manufacture and intended to be sacrificed after completion thereof
• CPC Class Codes: B29K 2055/02 ABS polymers, i.e. acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene polymers
• CPC Class Codes: B29K 2105/0008 Anti-static agents
• CPC Class Codes: B33Y 70/00 Materials specially adapted for additive manufacturing
• CPC Class Codes: C08K 5/0016 Plasticisers
• CPC Class Codes: C08L 33/02 Homopolymers or copolymers of acids; Metal or ammonium salts thereof

Abstract

The present invention is a composition for making a three-dimensional object. The composition comprises a plasticizer and a base polymer, where the base polymer comprises a carboxylic acid, where the composition is soluble in an alkaline solution.

Claims

1. A support material feedstock for making a support structure for a three-dimensional object using an additive processing technique, the support material feedstock comprising:

a composition comprising;

at least one copolymer comprising;

a plurality of pendent carboxylic acid groups; and

a plurality of pendent ester groups; and

at least one plasticizer, wherein the composition is soluble in an aqueous liquid; and

a filament geometry configured to be received by a filament-fed extrusion system configured to make the support structure in coordination with the three-dimensional object using the additive processing technique.

2. The support material feedstock of claim 1, wherein the plurality of pendent carboxylic acid groups are derived from monomers comprising methacrylic acid.

3. The support material feedstock of claim 1, wherein the plurality of pendent ester groups are derived from monomers comprising an alkyl methacrylate.

5. The support material feedstock of claim 1, wherein the composition consists essentially of the at least one copolymer and the at least one plasticizer.

6. The support material feedstock of claim 1, wherein the composition exhibits a melt flow index ranging from of about 1 gram/10 minutes to about 10 grams/10 minutes when tested pursuant to ASTM D1238 under a 1.2 kilogram load at 230°

C.

7. The support material feedstock of claim 1, wherein the at least one plasticizer constitutes from about 10% by weight to about 30% by weight of the composition, based on a total weight of the composition.

8. The support material feedstock of claim 1, wherein the at least one plasticizer comprises an aromatic plasticizer.

9. The support material feedstock of claim 1, wherein the aqueous liquid comprises an alkaline aqueous solution.

4. The support material feedstock of claim 4, wherein the alkyl methacrylate comprises methyl methacrylate.

10. A method of forming a feedstock for making a support structure, the method comprising:

providing at least one copolymer comprising a plurality of pendent carboxylic acid groups and a plurality of pendent ester groups, wherein the plurality of pendent carboxylic acid groups constitute from about 15.0% to about 60.0% by weight of pendent groups of the copolymer, based on a total weight of the pendent groups of the at least one copolymer;

combining the at least copolymer with at least one plasticizer to form a composition, the at least one plasticizer constituting from about 10% by weight to about 30% by weight of the composition, wherein the composition is soluble in an aqueous liquid; and

forming the feedstock from the composition, the formed feedstock having a filament geometry that is configured to be received by a filament-fed extrusion system configured to make the support structure in coordination with a three-dimensional object using an additive processing technique.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein providing the at least one copolymer comprises reacting monomers comprising methacrylic acid to form at least a portion of the plurality of pendent carboxylic acid groups.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein providing the at least one copolymer comprises reacting monomers comprising methyl methacrylate to form at least a portion of the plurality of pendent ester groups.

13. The method of claim 10, and further comprising drying the formed feedstock to remove moisture from the formed feedstock.

14. The method of claim 10, and further comprising winding successive portions of the formed feedstock onto a spool that is configured to supply the formed feedstock to the filament-fed extrusion system.

15. A method of building a three-dimensional object with an extrusion system, the method comprising:

heating a build envelope of the extrusion system to one or more elevated temperatures;

dispensing a thermoplastic material in the heated build envelope using an additive processing technique to form the three-dimensional object, the three-dimensional object having at least one overhanging feature;

dispensing a support material in the heated build envelope in coordination with the dispensing of the thermoplastic material, using the additive processing technique to form a support structure configured to support the at least one overhanging feature of the three-dimensional object, wherein the support material compositionally comprises;

at least one copolymer comprising;

a plurality of pendent carboxylic acid groups; and

a plurality of pendent ester groups; and

at least one plasticizer; and

exposing the formed support structure to an aqueous liquid to at least partially remove the formed support structure from the formed three-dimensional object.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the plurality of pendent carboxylic acid groups are derived from monomers comprising methacrylic acid.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein the plurality of pendent ester groups are derived from monomers comprising an alkyl methacrylate.

18. The method of claim 15, and further comprising:

feeding the support material to an extrusion head of the extrusion system as a filament; and

melting the filament of the support material in the extrusion head to a flowable state.

19. The method of claim 15, wherein the aqueous liquid comprises an alkaline aqueous solution.

20. The method of claim 15, wherein the at least one plasticizer constitutes from about 10% by weight to about 30% by weight of the composition of the support material, based on a total weight of the composition of the support material.