3Dom USA Unveils Glass Filled PLA 3D Printer Filament

The filaments space has been heating up as of late as numerous companies compete in an expanding market that could be worth billions of dollars over the next decade. While typical FDM/FFF 3D printers have been limited in the material and products that they can print, recent advancements in material science has allowed for the creation of ABS and PLA composite filaments which provide for the once unimaginable to become a reality.

3Dom USA, the company behind the popular Biome3D and Ingeo3D lines of filament, has just unveiled yet another innovative new filament called Glass Filled PLA. The new material which is a composite of regular PLA and glass fiber, has superior properties to ordinary PLA, while also being priced quite fairly.

“We just released Glass Filled PLA, an engineering grade 3D printer filament,” explained John Schneider, President and Co-founder of 3Dom USA. “This material is stronger, tougher, and more flexible than standard PLA.”

In releasing this new material, 3Dom USA seeks to advance the fabrication of engineered and practical-use 3D printed parts and components, while providing makers with yet another tool in their toolboxes. Glass Filled PLA differentiates itself from ordinary PLA in several valuable ways. With 57 MPa of max tensile strength, the new material is 40% stronger than PLA, while also 30% tougher, with 34 J/m of impact youghness. Additionally, the material is quite flexible (1.9 times that of PLA), and according to the company, it can achieve a tensile elongation of 3.4% prior to failure.

Similar to normal PLA, Glass Filled PLA possesses the sought after attributes of low warp occurrences, as well as a lack of any noticeable odor. Additionally, it can be printed without a heated build platform and no special extruders are required. Also just like regular PLA, it can be printed at a temperature of around 190 to 210 degrees Celsius. According to the company, objects printed with this new material will have a surface finish which is similar in appearance to ceramics.

Glass Filled PLA is available immediately on the company’s website in both 1.75 and 2.85mm diameters and is priced at $49 per 1kg spool. It is important to note that when objects with supports are printed with this material it may be a bit more difficult to remove those supports because of the rigidity.

This should be a welcomed release for those within the rapid prototyping industry as well as those looking to 3D print stronger and much more flexible end-use parts using an FDM/FFF 3D printer.  Let us know if you’ve tested this new material out and what you thought of it. Discuss in the 3Dom Glass Filled PLA forum thread on 3DPB.com.