A Material-Based Quality Concept for Polymer Laser Sintering

In this work, the quality of laser sintered parts is investigated along a defined process chain for a nylon 12 material (PA 2200) on an EOSINT P395 laser sintering system. Important influencing factors are figured out. Rheological powder characterization methods are investigated as well as mechanical, physical and other chosen part properties. The concept allows reproducible part quality characteristics and is used to obtain (testing) temperature dependent material data. It can also be extended on further materials based on nylon 12: PA 2241 FR, which is convenient for the aircraft industry due to its flame-retardant properties, and PA 2221, which has economic advantages due to a lower material consumption.