Protolabs, a digital manufacturing source for custom prototypes and low-volume production parts, has added nickel-based, heat resistant alloy Inconel 718 to its 3D printing portfolio.
Its high strength and corrosion resistant properties, along with its ability to be used at extreme temperatures, has seen the material become widely popular in the use of downhole equipment across the oil and gas sector.
“The need to meet the demands of high-pressure oil and gas wells requires a high strength alloy with excellent corrosion resistance to gas containing high carbon dioxide and hydrogen sulphide for completion apparatus,” said Daniel Cohn, general manager of 3D printing services at Protolabs. “Inconel 718 provides these properties and I am delighted that Protolabs is now able to offer this material to the sector. Combining the exceptional properties of the material with our expertise in Direct Metal Laser Sintering (DMLS) means we can rapidly produce complex geometries for parts which are exposed to harsh environments often seen in oil and gas.”
As a nickel-based heat resistant alloy, Inconel 718 is high strength and corrosion resistant and can be used at temperatures between -252°C and 704°C.
Its strength is derived from its ability to create a thick, stable passivating oxide layer at high temperatures, protecting the material from further attack. Inconel 718 also has good tensile, fatigue, creep and rupture strength.
Protolabs’ DMLS service is an industrial 3D printing process that builds fully functional rapid metal prototypes and production parts in 7 days or less. it is ideal when the geometry or structure of a part is not possible in any other production process.
