In the demanding world of manufacturing, particularly for tooling, high-heat prototypes, and specialized components, materials must withstand extreme conditions without compromising performance. Enter Henkel LOCTITE IND147 (IND147), a remarkable photopolymer resin available through Carbon's Digital Light Synthesis™ (DLS™) platform. This material pushes the boundaries of additive manufacturing solutions by offering an impressive combination of high-temperature resistance, stiffness, and dimensional stability, making it a key player for engineers and designers tackling tough thermal challenges.
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IND147 stands out in the additive manufacturing landscape due to its unique blend of properties, specifically engineered for high-performance needs. It's a one-part resin, simplifying the printing process while delivering industrial-grade results.
Perhaps the most defining feature of IND147 is its ability to perform under heat. With a Heat Deflection Temperature (HDT) reaching up to an astonishing 555.8°F (291°C), depending on the specific workflow, this material maintains its structural integrity and shape even when exposed to temperatures that would cause many other polymers to warp or fail. This makes it ideal for environments involving hot air, fluids, or processes like low-pressure molding and baking fixtures or injection molding tooling.
Beyond its thermal resilience, IND147 provides substantial rigidity. It boasts a high tensile modulus of approximately 3190 MPa and an ultimate tensile strength of around 67 MPa. This stiffness ensures that parts printed with IND147 resist bending and deformation under load, which is crucial for manufacturing tools, jigs, and fixtures that require precision and reliability.
Leveraging the precision of the Carbon DLS process, IND147 produces parts with a smooth surface finish and high dimensional accuracy. Its stability, especially under thermal stress, means that components maintain their intended geometry, a critical factor for plastic injection mold design services where tight tolerances are essential for producing quality end-products.
As a one-part resin, IND147 simplifies the additive manufacturing workflow. There's no need for complex mixing before printing, which saves time, reduces the chance of errors, and streamlines the process from design to finished part. This ease of use makes advanced, high-temperature material printing more accessible.
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The robust characteristics of IND147 open doors to a variety of demanding industrial uses where both thermal and mechanical performance are paramount.
IND147 shines in the creation of molds, especially for prototype injection molding. It is effectively used to create molds for materials like polyurethane and silicone. Furthermore, it's capable of producing short-run injection molding cores, even for materials like ABS, significantly accelerating product development cycles by allowing for rapid iteration and testing of mold designs before committing to expensive metal tooling.
On the factory floor, jigs and fixtures often need to withstand not only mechanical stress but also heat from nearby processes. IND147 is an excellent choice for creating durable, heat-resistant manufacturing aids that improve process efficiency and repeatability, including specialized items like high-temperature baking fixtures.
When prototyping parts that will eventually operate in high-temperature environments (like automotive under-hood components or industrial machinery), IND147 allows for functional testing under realistic thermal conditions. This provides invaluable insights early in the design phase, reducing risks and ensuring the final product meets its performance goals.
For certain low-volume production or custom parts, IND147 can serve as the end-use material. Electrical connectors, housings, and other components that demand high stiffness and must operate reliably at elevated temperatures are strong candidates for production with this advanced resin.
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When evaluating IND147, its performance characteristics invite comparison not just with standard engineering plastics, but with some of the most robust high-performance thermoplastics available for traditional manufacturing methods. Carbon's data suggests comparisons with materials like PEEK (Polyetheretherketone), PEI (Polyetherimide), PSU (Polysulfone), and PPSU (Polyphenylsulfone). These materials are known for their exceptional thermal stability, chemical resistance, and mechanical strength, often used in demanding aerospace, medical, and industrial sectors.
The most striking similarity lies in thermal performance. With a Heat Deflection Temperature (HDT) reaching up to 555.8°F (291°C), IND147 positions itself directly within the operational range of these elite thermoplastics. PEEK can achieve even higher temperatures, especially when filled, but IND147 surpasses many grades of PEI (often around 392°F / 200°C) and PPSU (around 405°F / 207°C) in terms of HDT. This makes IND147 a viable additive alternative when high-heat resistance is the primary design driver.
Mechanically, IND147 offers high stiffness, comparable to some grades of these high-performance plastics. However, materials like PEEK and PEI, particularly when reinforced with glass or carbon fiber for injection molding, typically exhibit superior tensile strength and significantly higher toughness and impact resistance due to their semi-crystalline or amorphous thermoplastic nature. IND147, as a thermosetting photopolymer, tends to be more brittle, with lower elongation. Similarly, while IND147 offers good dimensional stability, the established chemical resistance profiles of materials like PEEK and PPSU are often broader, especially against aggressive industrial chemicals.
The most significant differentiator is the manufacturing process. PEEK, PEI, PSU, and PPSU demand extremely high processing temperatures and pressures for injection molding, requiring specialized equipment, robust tooling, and potentially leading to higher manufacturing costs and longer lead times for tooling. In contrast, IND147 utilizes Carbon DLS, enabling the production of highly complex parts, integrated assemblies, and prototypes or low-volume series runs with unprecedented speed and generally lower cost than traditional tooling. This allows designers to leverage high-temperature performance with the geometric freedom and agility inherent in design for additive manufacturing (DfAM), a compelling advantage where traditional methods fall short or are economically unfeasible.
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Despite its impressive capabilities, IND147 has considerations that users should be aware of when selecting it for a project.
High-performance photopolymers, including IND147, typically carry a higher material cost than commodity thermoplastics like standard PP or ABS. While the DLS process can be cost-effective for low volumes and complex parts, the raw material expense is a factor to consider in overall project budgeting.
While stiff and strong, IND147 exhibits relatively low elongation at break (around 3%). This means it is more brittle than many engineering thermoplastics. For parts requiring significant flexibility or high impact absorption, other materials might be more suitable.
Like all vat photopolymerization processes, parts printed with IND147 require post-processing. This involves washing to remove excess resin and post-curing with UV light and sometimes heat to achieve final material properties. These steps add time and labor to the overall manufacturing process.
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LOCTITE IND147 is the material of choice when exceptional heat resistance is a non-negotiable requirement and the benefits of additive manufacturing (design freedom, speed for prototypes and low-volume series, and tool-less production) align with project goals. It bridges the gap between prototyping and production by enabling the creation of functional tools, fixtures, and parts that can withstand severe thermal loads.
For companies involved in industries ranging from automotive and aerospace to medical device prototyping and tooling development even those exploring tooling for medical end uses, IND147 offers a pathway to innovate faster, create more efficient manufacturing aids, and produce high-performance parts that were previously difficult to realize. Its unique position as a high-stiffness, ultra-high-temperature resin within the Carbon DLS ecosystem makes it an invaluable tool for solving complex engineering challenges.