Victrex, a global maker of high-performance polyetheretherketone (PEEK) and polyaryletherketone (PAEK) polymer, has launched Victrex AM 200 filament, specifically developed and optimized for additive manufacturing (AM). Incumbent PEEK materials on the market today, although used in some AM applications, were designed for conventional manufacturing methods, such as machining and injection molding. The first supplier to offer Victrex’s new AM PAEK filament is industrial 3D-printing technology company Intamsys.

“This new generation of Victrex additive manufacturing PAEK filament represents an important step forward for Victrex and we are excited now to work closely with Intamsys,” commented Jakob Sigurdsson, Victrex CEO. “Due to excellent cooperation with companies and institutions that pursue innovation in additive manufacturing, such as Intamsys, as well as Victrex’s continued research, we have been making sustained progress toward creating truly innovative components based on the design freedom of additive manufacturing combined with the high performance of PAEK polymers.”

The new PAEK-based Victrex AM filament features excellent mechanical properties, which are in demand for high-performance parts. Repurposing injection molding PEEK into filament fusion AM typically results in weak parts because of poor interlayer bonding. The new material is designed to address this weakness. According to Intamsys, Victrex AM 200 filament has a higher Z-axis strength and has shown up to 80% strength in the X-Y direction with a better fused filament forming (FFF) printing adaptability than existing PAEK materials.

Intamsys has conducted physical and mechanical performance tests on the new Victrex PAEK filament material using different printers, including its industrial-grade, high-temperature Funmat Pro 410. “Our test results to date have shown that the Victrex AM 200 filament has better interlayer adhesion than other PAEK materials on Intamsys machines,” said Charles Han, founder and CEO at Intamsys. “Compared with unfilled PEEK, it is designed with slower crystallization, a lower melt temperature, and a viscosity fine tuned to the filament fusion process, such as easier flow in the build chamber after leaving the nozzle. All this contributes to improved inter-laminar adhesion, easier printing (less shrinkage and warp), and a better suitability for FDM 3D printing compared to other similar options, based upon the testing we have done up to this point.”

Intamsys is the first company to be part of Victrex’s proposed filament fusion network supporting this new filament. The network aims to facilitate the use of Victrex AM materials based on PAEK polymers, and includes further material solutions specifically developed for use in additive manufacturing technology, Victrex explained.