DIY Selective Laser Sintering FAQ
Contents
- 1 Introduction
- 2 General Questions about Selective Laser Sintering
- 3 Questions about Lasers
- 3.1 What lasers can I use for a DIY SLS machine?
- 3.2 What are the pros and cons of a diode laser for a DIY SLS machine?
- 3.3 What are the pros and cons of a CO2 laser for a DIY SLS machine?
- 3.4 Where can I learn more about lasers?
- 3.5 Are there any viable alternatives to lasers for a DIY SLS machine?
- 4 Questions about Materials
- 4.1 What materials are suitable for DIY SLS processes?
- 4.2 Where can I get PLA powder?
- 4.3 Where can I get ABS powder?
- 4.4 Where can I get professional-grade nylon powder?
- 4.5 Can I use metal in a DIY SLS machine?
- 4.6 Can I reuse unsintered material left in the build chamber after the job in finished?
- 5 Questions about Hardware
- 6 Questions about Open Source Projects
Introduction
Some time ago I started research on feasibility of building a DIY Selective Laser Sintering rapid prototyping machine to work with thermoplastics. It quickly turned out that a there are quite a few enthusiasts who are already doing something in this area, as well as wealth of helpful information. However, what I found, it is very time consuming to gather enough background information to actually be able to design and build an SLS machine. So, I've started this FAQ with the aim to build easily accessible all-in-one collection of common answers to common questions so that other enthusiasts like me could save time looking for the same information. Hopefully this becomes a living document as knowledge of the community grows.
--Igor Lobanov 20:08, 27 June 2013 (UTC)
General Questions about Selective Laser Sintering
What is SLS?
From Wikipedia[1]:
Selective laser sintering (SLS) is an additive manufacturing technique used for the low volume production of prototype models and functional components (...) An additive manufacturing layer technology, SLS involves the use of a high power laser (for example, a carbon dioxide laser) to fuse small particles of plastic, metal (direct metal laser sintering), ceramic, or glass powders into a mass that has a desired three-dimensional shape. The laser selectively fuses powdered material by scanning cross-sections generated from a 3-D digital description of the part (for example from a CAD file or scan data) on the surface of a powder bed. After each cross-section is scanned, the powder bed is lowered by one layer thickness, a new layer of material is applied on top, and the process is repeated until the part is completed.
