| abstract |
Apparatus for post-processing an additively manufactured polymer part, comprising a solvent reservoir 402; a processing chamber 404 in controllable fluid communication with the reservoir; and a controller 418 configured to controllably post-process the polymer part responsive to at least one parameter associated with the part 406. Parameters could include desired surface finish and/or a geometric property such as surface area, volume, dimension and/or part complexity. The chamber may have a heating element on at least one inner surface. A method for post-processing an additively manufactured polymer part is also provided. The part in the chamber, may be placed under vacuum 412 before the pre-determined amount of solvent is transferred in 416. The solvent may condense on the polymer surface 418, which may be cooled, for a pre-determined exposure time. After this, a vacuum may be applied to remove the solvent from the polymer part 420. The solvent may be recovered using a condenser and returned to the reservoir 422, which may include a separate chamber for recovered solvent. The vacuum pump may vent the processing chamber to atmosphere. |