The materials for additive manufacturing of Solvay have been enlarged with the launch of Solef PVDF AM filament, targeted at fused filament fabrication (FFF) processes. With the Solef PVDF (polyvinylidene fluoride) AM filament MSC NT 1, Solvay is joining the Material Alliance program formed by Ultimaker, a global leader for high-quality 3D printers and software. The Solef PVDF AM filament print profile is now available on Ultimaker‘s Marketplace to enable optimized 3D printing on Ultimaker printers. Its Material Alliance aims at meeting growing demand for industrial-grade 3D printing materials and offers free downloads of print profiles.

“As AM technologies are rapidly expanding their scope from prototyping to tooling to small series production in the most demanding industries, our new Solef PVDF filament extends material options for engineers and designers to include fluorinated semi-crystalline thermoplastics. The filament opens up a wide range of new FFF possibilities especially in the chemical processing, semiconductor and oil & gas industries”, says Christophe Schramm, Manager of New Technologies for Solvay’s Specialty Polymers global business unit. “We are pleased to partner with Ultimaker for a plug-and-play experience with Solvay's new AM filament material and Ultimaker's large installed base of printers”.

Solef PVDF AM filament MSC NT 1 provides long term performance up to 120°C, including exceptional chemical resistance and outstanding UV, weathering and oxidation resistance. The product is also intrinsically endowed with very high purity. These features make it particularly suited for outdoor applications and parts in contact with harsh chemical environments.

“Solvay’s partnership with Ultimaker underscores our commitment to building a strong and diversified AM ecosystem that meets the increasing needs of our customers for high-performance 3D printable specialty polymers,” adds Paul Heiden, SVP Product Management, Ultimaker. “We encourage manufacturers and designers to explore Ultimaker’s Marketplace and use the print profile of Solef PVDF AM filament for evaluation”.