Designated by the manufacturer as Stratasys Vero™ TANGOPLUS FLX930 PolyJet 3D Printing PhotoPolymer, this material is a UV-curable elastomeric photopolymer supplied in sealed cartridges for PolyJet deposition. The cured product occupies a different mechanical class from rigid Vero resins: the manufacturer’s technical literature reports a nominal hardness of 26–28 Shore A under ASTM D2240, tensile and tear behaviour under ASTM D412 and ASTM D624, and density of approximately 1.12–1.13 g/cm³ under ASTM D792. The liquid resin is an acrylate-based formulation that polymerises through UV exposure immediately after jetting, with no thermal post-cure required for standard mechanical property development. The product is released under a system-specific material licence; installation on a host printer is permitted only when the equipment firmware contains the FLX930 material configuration file. Compatibility must be confirmed against the printer’s current material list before cartridge loading, because use on an unlicensed system produces incorrect print parameters and falls outside the manufacturer’s process window.

The stated mechanical values are representative intervals from public technical literature, not lot-specific acceptance limits. A certificate of analysis is required for formal qualification, and property values change with build orientation, part thickness, and conditioning history.

Measured Elastomeric Performance and Test Methodology

For elastomer-grade PolyJet materials, the evaluation protocols differ from those applied to rigid photopolymers. The table below summarises representative data for FLX930 under standard methods cited in manufacturer technical literature. Intervals reflect normal lot-to-lot variability in the liquid resin and the influence of print mode.

These results place the material in the low-stiffness elastomer range. Tensile strength of 2.0–2.5 MPa is approximately one twentieth of the value reported for rigid Vero-class resins, while elongation at break is at least one order of magnitude higher. Tear strength in the 2.4–3.2 kg/cm range under ASTM D624 indicates resistance to initial nick propagation in gasket-like features, but the standard datasheet does not provide compression set data; sustained sealing applications require a separate ASTM D395 evaluation because the material may exhibit viscoelastic relaxation under continuous compressive strain.

Before any metrology or mechanical testing, printed parts are conditioned. Support removal is performed with the manufacturer’s aqueous jetting station, not with hand scrapers, because thin elastomeric features deform under localised force. The cured resin is hygroscopic; water absorbed during support removal alters mass and can reduce apparent Shore A hardness. Conditioning at 23 ±2 °C and 50 ±5% relative humidity until mass stabilises, following the general practice of ASTM D618-21, is required before reporting mechanical values. For parts with blind channels below 3 mm in diameter, residual support material can remain after the standard water-jet cycle and should be inspected under 365 nm UV illumination because the support material is formulated to fluoresce.

Layer thickness is selectable between 16 µm and 30 µm depending on the host system and print mode. The 16 µm setting produces smoother overmould interfaces and generally higher z-direction elongation, but increases build time. The 30 µm setting is used for larger elastomeric surfaces where fine surface detail is not the limiting requirement. Build orientation changes the anisotropic response: tensile coupons printed in the Z-orientation typically exhibit lower elongation than XY-oriented coupons because the layer interface is the weakest path for crack propagation. This effect is not captured by a single datasheet value and must be characterised for any part in which a tensile load crosses printed layer boundaries.

The liquid resin is heated at the print head to approximately 70–75 °C to reduce viscosity for stable jetting. Build chamber temperature is controlled by the printer but is not user-adjustable. Printer firmware adjusts jetting voltage and meniscus vacuum based on the material configuration file; manual override is not recommended. In high-humidity production environments, the print head can accumulate water condensation on the orifice plate if ambient humidity exceeds 60% RH, which may increase the frequency of print-head cleaning cycles and delay production. Published data for a fixed humidity threshold in this configuration is limited, but the manufacturer’s site preparation documents define the acceptable environment.

On production platforms such as the Stratasys J750 series, mixed-material builds combine FLX930 with rigid Vero or Digital ABS in a single tray. The printer deposits the two resins through separate channels and can generate a graded interface when the digital material mode is active. This approach avoids secondary adhesive bonding and is used for soft-touch enclosures and overmould prototypes. The build time penalty is significant because the system must perform frequent print-head maintenance cycles during multi-material deposition, and the mixed-material tray cannot be processed under the same conditions as a single-material rigid build.

What Distinguishes FLX930 from Rigid Vero-Class Materials, Digital ABS, and Agilus30?

Rigid Vero-class photopolymers are tested under ASTM D638 and achieve tensile strength in the 50–65 MPa range, elongation at break typically below 25%, and Shore D hardness above 80. FLX930 sits at the opposite end of the stiffness spectrum. Its tensile strength of 2.0–2.5 MPa and Shore A hardness of 26–28 make it unsuitable for load-bearing housing structures, but it recovers from high strain and conforms to irregular mating surfaces. The test method itself changes: rigid resins are evaluated as plastics under ASTM D638, whereas elastomeric FLX930 is evaluated as a rubber-like solid under ASTM D412; a direct modulus comparison is therefore not valid without a conversion model and may misrepresent the material.

Digital ABS is a rigid engineering photopolymer with higher tensile strength and thermal deflection than FLX930 and is not a soft-touch substitute. It is selected for snap-fit prototypes and tooling fixtures, not for elastomeric seals. Compared with the later Agilus30 elastomer family, FLX930 is described in manufacturer literature as a lower-durometer option with a narrower property window for tear resistance. Published data for direct substitution under ISO 34-1 tear testing is limited, and a change from FLX930 to Agilus30 should be treated as a material conversion requiring revalidation of part function because support removal settings and tensile behaviour differ.

The difference in thermal behaviour is also relevant. Rigid Vero materials have heat deflection temperatures near 45–50 °C under 0.45 MPa, whereas FLX930 behaves as an elastomer and will creep under continuous load at elevated ambient temperatures. Room-temperature service is appropriate; long-term exposure above 40 °C under a static load may produce permanent set, but published data for this specific configuration is limited.

In soft-touch handheld industrial scanner enclosures, an outer layer of FLX930 with a thickness of 2–3 mm is printed over a rigid Vero core in a single build. The elastomer layer provides a Shore A 27 gripping surface and reduces the likelihood of impact damage to internal assembly features. The interface between the rigid and flexible phases is a photopolymer blend generated by the printer; it does not require secondary adhesive bonding. The same process is used for overmoulded gasket prototypes, where a compressible bead is printed directly onto a rigid cover. However, the bead must be designed with a minimum cross-section of 1.5 mm to remain intact during support removal; narrower beads are prone to tearing under the water-jet pressure.

In medical anatomical modelling, the material is used for compliant vessel segments and soft-tissue analogues in models produced under ISO 13485 quality controls. The standard formulation of FLX930 is not certified for implantation or prolonged patient contact; biological evaluation according to ISO 10993-1 is required for any use beyond external visual or tactile demonstration. The material is not rated for steam autoclave sterilisation. Chemical sterilant compatibility may be evaluated on a case-by-case basis, but immersion in solvent-based sterilants can produce swelling and surface tack.

In manufacturing aids, the material is printed as vacuum-sealing pads and CMM fixture liners. Its low Shore A hardness protects painted or anodised surfaces from contact marking, but the part must be conditioned and measured after moisture equilibration; otherwise dimensional values will drift as absorbed moisture escapes. Vacuum-sealing pads used in automated pick-and-place lines include a thin lip printed at 1.0–1.5 mm thickness; if the lip is too thick, the contact pressure required to seal exceeds the available vacuum. The pad geometry must be leak-tested with a pressure decay method before production use, because standard PolyJet data does not replace part-specific validation.

If Ambient Conditions or Secondary Overmould Bonding Are Not Controlled, Dimensional Drift Occurs

Relative humidity is the dominant environmental variable after support removal. The cured resin can absorb moisture; if a part is measured immediately after support removal, dimensions and mass will be elevated. Conditioning at 23 ±2 °C and 50 ±5% RH until mass stabilisation is required before reporting dimensional data, and parts returned to humid environments can gain weight up to the water-absorption range indicated in the datasheet. This is reversible by re-drying, but repeated moisture cycling may create surface microcracks in high-strain regions.

Support removal temperature affects the lower-durometer elastomer matrix. Immersion or water-jet cleaning above 30 °C increases swelling and can damage fine elastomeric features. Use ambient-temperature water unless the material-specific documentation explicitly permits heated cleaning. Solvent exposure is another boundary: brief wiping with isopropyl alcohol is standard for cleaning, but immersion in ketones or ester-based solvents produces swelling, loss of Shore A hardness, and surface tack. The material should not be placed in solvent vapour degreasing equipment.

Post-cure UV exposure is a critical threshold. The photopolymer remains UV-sensitive after the standard build. Exposure to sunlight or high-intensity 405 nm curing lamps increases surface crosslink density, raises hardness, and reduces elongation at break. Published data for outdoor weathering under ASTM G154 or ISO 4892-2 is limited for this grade; therefore, UV-stable service is outside the standard datasheet envelope. For parts that must survive outdoor or lighting-intensive environments, a protective coating or alternative UV-stable elastomer grade is required.

Long-term compressive creep is a recognised operational boundary. The standard datasheet does not report compression set or creep modulus, so a gasket or pad that will remain under continuous closure force should be evaluated by the end user under ASTM D395 or a custom application-specific creep test. Static loads can produce progressive relaxation of the elastomer, leading to loss of sealing force. Storage of unused material is also constrained: cartridges should be stored in the manufacturer’s original sealed packaging at 16–27 °C and away from direct light. The lot-specific expiration date must be observed because aged resin can show increased viscosity and print-head clogging tendency.