My current prototyping project involves an air ram which I use as a pump. Its cylinder is drawn copper tube (150mm nominal) and its head and tail are 3D Printed (polylactic acid, PLA). Its working pressure is only 0.1Bar.
My problem is that the head and tail leak air right through the PLA.
My printer uses 0.8mm nozzles and the wall thicknesses involved are 4mm (with the current printer settings this means that the walls are solid PLA, there is no matrix infill involved).
I find it hard to believe my eyes, but it is true. Air escapes right through the printed PLA walls. It gets worse ... I have painted the pressurised surfaces of the head and tail with Rust-oleum sealant and the air still gets through!
Does anyone have a solution to this problem?
I'd love to hear it because I'm all out of ideas.
There are a lot of companies that do vacuum impregnation on steel castings as it is not uncommon to get porosity. One of these companies is Loctite. I wonder if you can use a compatible Loctite wick-in product? You may need an activator though as you’re not dealing with an oxidising material and Loctite uses an anaerobic reaction to set, meaning it would take a long time to cure otherwise.Originally Posted by rickduley
My current prototyping project involves an air ram which I use as a pump. Its cylinder is drawn copper tube (150mm nominal) and its head and tail are 3D Printed (polylactic acid, PLA). Its working pressure is only 0.1Bar.
My problem is that the head and tail leak air right through the PLA.
My printer uses 0.8mm nozzles and the wall thicknesses involved are 4mm (with the current printer settings this means that the walls are solid PLA, there is no matrix infill involved).
I find it hard to believe my eyes, but it is true. Air escapes right through the printed PLA walls. It gets worse ... I have painted the pressurised surfaces of the head and tail with Rust-oleum sealant and the air still gets through!
Does anyone have a solution to this problem?
I'd love to hear it because I'm all out of ideas.
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