What Are The Commonly Used Materials for Prototyping?

The materials commonly used in prototype production can be divided into two categories: plastic and metal. Among them, aluminum alloy and stainless steel are two common metals. However, aluminum alloy is generally used for prototype production. Aluminum alloy has low density, but high strength, good processability, excellent welding characteristics and electroplating, good corrosion resistance, high toughness, and no deformation after processing, dense materials without defects, easy polishing, easy coloring film, good oxidation effect and other excellent characteristics. After sand blasting and oxidation treatment, The appearance will be better.

The commonly used materials for making plastic prototype are ABS, POM, PMMA, PA, PC, PP, PPS, etc. Among them, ABS is an engineering plastic, which is commonly used in the hand board industry. It has excellent impact resistance, heat resistance, low temperature resistance, chemical resistance and electrical performance. It also has the characteristics of easy processing, stable product size, and good surface gloss. It can be disassembled for processing, which can meet the basic requirements of products in various industries. ABS hand models are generally widely used in product shells with strong connectivity. Most of them are used in metal plating products, such as water electroplating and vacuum evaporation electroplating. The models of their materials include round bars, plates, etc.

POM: It is a hard and dense material with smooth surface and good glossiness. It has good bending strength, fatigue resistance and wear resistance, and is suitable for making gear parts.

PMMA: Commonly known as acrylic, also known as plexiglass, with good transparency, better transparency than PC materials, and excellent heat resistance. PMMA belongs to both acrylic and organic glass. It has good transparency and is the best material for transparent products. It can be used for dyeing, electroplating, spraying, screen printing, etc., as well as products with strong solubility, but its stronghold is relatively fragile. The utility model is suitable for the mechanism with a hook.

PA: Also known as nylon, it has high mechanical strength, good toughness, and does not stick glue. It is not recommended to disassemble parts for processing.

PC: It is a transparent material with high impact strength, good dimensional stability, colorless transparency, good colourability, good abrasion resistance and high temperature resistance. PC is a product with good strength, high flexibility and transparency. Its advantages are all in one. In addition, it also has glass fiber plates to improve the steel and heat resistance, which is more suitable for Lens, the first choice of fine products, and the production of prototype products that need to remain rigid in high temperature environments.

PP: Polypropylene, small density, rigid strength, hardness and heat resistance are better than low pressure polyethylene, and can be used at a temperature of about 100 °. PP is a translucent material, which has the advantages of high impact resistance and strong impact resistance, and its flexibility is also very good. It can be applied to products with very high impact resistance requirements, such as auto parts, which are packaged as a folding model.

PPS: It is a high temperature resistant material, which can not deform at 230 ℃.