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I am not an Ultimaker spokesperson, and not related to the company. So what I say is only from experience, and has no official value.
There are hundreds of different silicones, from very soft (flesh-like) to very hard, from elastic to very brittle, from non-stick for mould making to very sticky for glueing, high-temp and low-temp, platina-cured, tin-cured, liquid, paste, kneadable, sanitary/non-sanitary, filled and unfilled, overpaintable and non-paintable, chemically resistant and non-resistant,... The list is endless.
I mainly use non-sticking silicones for mould making, which obviously don't stick at all.
Then there are lots of different PLA-formulations and additives. And also surface-shape and surface-preparation could play an important role.
Also, there do exist activators that improve bonding of silicones to plastics, but I don't know how they work chemically.
So I think the only one who could answer this question, is you yourself, depending on which materials you use in which circumstances. I guess you will need to do your own strength tests.
The same is probably true for the use of chemicals and solvents on PLA and other 3D-printing materials. At best manufacturers could give general rough guidelines. 3D-materials may contain lots of additives: softeners, colors, UV-protective agents,... These may have different chemical resistances from the base resin.
Some of my models have been used in the hospital and desinfected with isopropyl alcohol without damage. But they are only for single use, so the chemical contact is very superficial and short, they are not drowned into it.
Additionally, expect PLA to get harder and more brittle over time. Snap-fit mechanisms that work well originally, are likely to break if you try them after a year, in my experience. It seems that this is due to changes in crystal structure, from amorphe to more crystalline, if I understood it well.
Also, expect PLA to deform in a car, or in sunlight behind a window. Even in moderate spring or autumn weather. This too is from experience...
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In this stable release, Cura 5.3 achieves yet another huge leap forward in 3D printing thanks to material interlocking! As well as introducing an expanded recommended print settings menu and lots of print quality improvements. Not to mention, a whole bunch of new printer profiles for non-UltiMaker printers!
The UltiMaker S7 is built on the success of the UltiMaker S5 and its design decisions were heavily based on feedback from customers.
So what’s new?
The obvious change is the S7’s height. It now includes an integrated Air Manager. This filters the exhaust air of every print and also improves build temperature stability. To further enclose the build chamber the S7 only has one magnetically latched door.
The build stack has also been completely redesigned. A PEI-coated flexible steel build plate makes a big difference to productivity. Not only do you not need tools to pop a printed part off. But we also don’t recommend using or adhesion structures for UltiMaker materials (except PC, because...it’s PC). Along with that, 4 pins and 25 magnets make it easy to replace the flex plate perfectly – even with one hand.
The re-engineered print head has an inductive sensor which reduces noise when probing the build plate. This effectively makes it much harder to not achieve a perfect first layer, improving overall print success. We also reversed the front fan direction (fewer plastic hairs, less maintenance), made the print core door magnets stronger, and add a sensor that helps avoid flooding.
The UltiMaker S7 also includes quality of life improvements:
Reliable bed tilt compensation (no more thumbscrews) 2.4 and 5 GHz Wi-Fi A 1080p camera (mounted higher for a better view) Compatibility with 280+ Marketplace materials Compatibility with S5 project files (no reslicing needed) And a whole lot more
Curious to see the S7 in action?
We’re hosting a free tech demo on February 7.
It will be live and you can ask any questions to our CTO, Miguel Calvo.
Register here for the Webinar
Are you a fan of tree support, but dislike the removal process and the amount of filament it uses? Then we would like to invite you to try this special release of UltiMaker Cura. Brought to you by our special community contributor @thomasrahm
We generated a special version of Cura 5.2 called 5.3.0 Alpha + Xmas. The only changes we introduced compared to UltiMaker Cura 5.2.1 are those which are needed for the new supports. So keep in mind, this is not a sneak peek for Cura 5.3 (there are some really cool new features coming up) but a spotlight release highlighting this new version of tree supports.
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I am not an Ultimaker spokesperson, and not related to the company. So what I say is only from experience, and has no official value.
There are hundreds of different silicones, from very soft (flesh-like) to very hard, from elastic to very brittle, from non-stick for mould making to very sticky for glueing, high-temp and low-temp, platina-cured, tin-cured, liquid, paste, kneadable, sanitary/non-sanitary, filled and unfilled, overpaintable and non-paintable, chemically resistant and non-resistant,... The list is endless.
I mainly use non-sticking silicones for mould making, which obviously don't stick at all.
Then there are lots of different PLA-formulations and additives. And also surface-shape and surface-preparation could play an important role.
Also, there do exist activators that improve bonding of silicones to plastics, but I don't know how they work chemically.
So I think the only one who could answer this question, is you yourself, depending on which materials you use in which circumstances. I guess you will need to do your own strength tests.
The same is probably true for the use of chemicals and solvents on PLA and other 3D-printing materials. At best manufacturers could give general rough guidelines. 3D-materials may contain lots of additives: softeners, colors, UV-protective agents,... These may have different chemical resistances from the base resin.
Some of my models have been used in the hospital and desinfected with isopropyl alcohol without damage. But they are only for single use, so the chemical contact is very superficial and short, they are not drowned into it.
Additionally, expect PLA to get harder and more brittle over time. Snap-fit mechanisms that work well originally, are likely to break if you try them after a year, in my experience. It seems that this is due to changes in crystal structure, from amorphe to more crystalline, if I understood it well.
Also, expect PLA to deform in a car, or in sunlight behind a window. Even in moderate spring or autumn weather. This too is from experience...
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