How To Make Steel That Breathes
Breathable steel is a new material that allows gases to pass through while remaining impermeable to liquids. This innovation is particularly useful in the molding industry, where it can help prevent defects in molded plastic parts. The production of breathable steel involves advanced additive manufacturing techniques that create tiny interconnected pores within the metal.
- ▪Breathable steel allows air to vent through the tooling itself, reducing defects in molded plastic parts.
- ▪The material is produced using selective laser melting (SLM) techniques combined with a foaming agent to create fine pores.
- ▪Controlling the level of porosity can be achieved by adjusting the amount of foaming agent and laser settings.
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How To Make Steel That Breathes No comments by: Zoe Skyforest May 18, 2026 Title: Copy Short Link: Copy There are plenty of porous materials out there that we’re all readily familiar with. Fabrics and wood are great examples, allowing liquids or gases to pass through to a certain degree—a property which is useful or problematic depending on the application. Metals, however, are not something we would readily consider to be porous. They are solid, unyielding, and impermeable. However, with the right techniques, it is possible to produce so-called “breathable” steel, which has particularly interesting applications in the molding industry. Breathe Into Me And Make Me Real Imagine you’re making tooling for an injection molding operation.
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