SGL Group and ExOne collaborate to bring carbon to 3D printing market

SGL Group (Wiesbaden, Germany) announce Feb. 27 its collaboration with ExOne (North Huntingdon, PA, US) to bring carbon and graphite components created using 3D binder jet printing technology to the market under the brand name CARBOPRINT. The material was presented for the first time at the Berlin Waste Management and Energy Conference in late January. 

3D printing describes the building of individual layers of material into three-dimensional parts based on a digital file, without tooling or machining. 

SGL Group brings extensive knowledge on the raw material and powder preparation to the collaboration, as well as versatile technologies for post-processing carbon components. As the leading supplier for industrial binder jet printing technology, ExOne contributes expertise in 3D printing. ExOne’s 3D printing technology enables not only the production of small prototypes, but also efficient serial production and fast development of customer-specific solutions.

Post-processing, such as polymer impregnation or silicon or metal infiltration, plays an important role as the carbon body is initially porous after printing. These additional processes allow the adjustment of versatile material properties to the specific application. 

Trial components made with CARBOPRINT are being developed for testing in applications in the areas of chemical apparatus construction and environmental technology; concrete examples include heat exchangers and components for distillation columns, as well as pump components made of siliconized 3D-printed carbon.