Build material and applications thereof

Abstract

In one aspect, build materials operable for use in 3D printing systems are described herein. In some embodiments, a build material comprises about 10 to 30 percent by weight of an oligomeric curable material; about 50 to 75 percent by weight of at least one diluent; and about 3 to 15 percent by weight of a reactive component. Moreover, in some cases, the build material is free or substantially free of a non-reactive wax component.

That which is claimed: 
     
         1 . A method of printing a three dimensional article comprising:
 selectively depositing layers of a fluid build material to form the three dimensional article on a substrate, the build material comprising an oligomeric curable material, a reactive component that is present in the build material as crystalline regions, and at least one diluent,   wherein the reactive component comprises at least one chemical moiety that is polymerizable with a chemical moiety contained in the oligomeric curable material and/or the at least one diluent, and   wherein the build material when cured exhibits a tensile modulus of 2250-3150 MPa and a tensile strength of 46-76 MPa when measured according to ASTM D 638.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the layers of the build material are deposited according to an image of the three dimensional article in a computer readable format. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the build material is deposited according to preselected computer aided design (CAD) parameters. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1  further comprising supporting at least one of the layers of the build material with a support material. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1  further comprising curing the build material. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the build material solidifies upon deposition. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the build material remains substantially fluid upon deposition. 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the build material comprises:
 10 to 30 percent by weight of the oligomeric curable material;   5 to 15 percent by weight of the reactive component; and   50 to 75 percent by weight of the at least one diluent, based on the total weight of the build material.   
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 8 , wherein the build material further comprises:
 less than 5 percent by weight of a non-reactive wax component, based on the total weight of the build material.   
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 8 , wherein the build material further comprises:
 less than 1 percent by weight of a non-reactive wax component, based on the total weight of the build material.   
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the oligomeric curable material is a urethane (meth)acrylate having a viscosity ranging from 10,000 cps to 300,000 cps at 50° C. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the reactive component comprises an isocyanurate (meth)acrylate.