TL;DR: Hotter and harder than ever before.
How we got here
For over a decade E3D have been at the forefront of FDM innovation in the world of extrusion systems and coatings. Our mission has always been to change the way humanity manufactures goods and our new ObXiDian® 500 technology seamlessly blends the best of all our learnings so far, taking us one step closer to that goal!
ObXiDian 500’s predecessor, ObXidian®, has been a fan favourite since it was launched in 2022 selling over 250k products to date! If you don’t already know, ObXidian uses a DLC (diamond-like-carbon) coating and one thing people love about it is its extreme wear-resistance, enabling long-lasting nozzles that allow them to print abrasive materials over and over again.
However, one limitation of the DLC coating is that it loses some of its hardness and wear performance at temperatures over 300°C. When exposed to temperatures above 300°C, the diamond bonds between the carbon atoms in the coating can change to graphite bonds. This process is irreversible and results in a drop in the hardness and therefore the wear performance of the coating. When ObXidian was first released this wasn’t an issue, as most desktop 3D printers had a maximum HotEnd temperature of 300°C. But, as the industry has continued to evolve we’ve seen printers expand in capability above this threshold, and materials like PPS and high temperature nylons become much more widely used.
To allow users to keep up with the ever-moving industry, we released our HTA nozzles, suitable for high-temperature 3D printing up to a toasty 500°C without the need for slicer changes. To achieve this we replaced the DLC coating used on ObXidian with a chromium nitride coating. This coating is good to 500°C, but it’s less wear resistant than ObXidian and doesn’t have the same non-stick performance.
If E3D is going to change the way humanity manufactures goods then performance limitations like these just aren’t going to cut it. So, with our mission firmly in mind, our engineers went back to the drawing board to develop a brand-new technology that would combine all the benefits of our previous innovations. And voila! ObXiDian 500 was born!
Addressing the big D
Eagle-eyed readers will notice that a capital D has penetrated the name of this new technology. What does that mean you ask? Get your minds out of the gutter and think back to ancient Rome for a second! D, as you roman numeral enthusiasts will be aware, stands for 500, and this technology is now hot to go up to 500°C. Simple really.
Made in a magic microwave
The application of ObXidian’s E3DLC™ coating is pretty badass. We ionize a carbon-based gas in a vacuum chamber, then using powerful electromagnets create a plasma. An electrical bias on the nozzle then causes the carbon molecules to combine and grow on their surface. In layman’s terms, the nozzles are put into a magic microwave and they come out covered in rainbows!
ObXiDian 500 is also made in a mystical microwave but there are some subtle differences which make it even cooler. The process is a bit like fancy weld spatter. A high-energy discharge inside the vacuum chamber causes explosive evaporation of metallic atoms. These then react with the gases inside the chamber and form a coating on the nozzles due to the presence of an electrical charge. Told you it was cool.
Why upgrade to ObXiDian 500?
With ObXidian you had a taste of the rainbow, and now we’re giving you even more! Here’s a snapshot of the key benefits you can experience – keep reading for the science behind the features that will improve your 3D prints.
- Ultra abrasion-resistance
- Ability to print with ANY material – even glow in the dark filaments
- Non-stick properties for improved print quality and easy cleaning
- Better layer adhesion for smooth, strong results
- Long lifespan
- Rainbows – need we say more?
Abrasion resistance pumped up to 11
The market is continually evolving and filament manufacturers are constantly developing new and exciting technical materials. We want to live in a world where anyone can print with whatever filament they like without fear of nozzle abrasion issues, and this was a big driver of ObXiDian 500.
While performance with every filament is different, it’s safe to say that ObXiDian 500’s wear performance is increased over ObXidian by at least a factor of five.
Thanks to the high hardness, the reality is that a lot of popular abrasive filaments simply won’t wear an ObXiDian 500 nozzle. We even rate them for printing notoriously tricky UV-reactive/ “glow in the dark” filaments. These materials include an additive called Strontium Aluminate, which is very hard. At high movement speeds, the deposited layers begin to work like sandpaper. This wear mechanism is quite complex, it’s a function of speed and distance (imagine pulling your finger across some sandpaper, the further you go the hotter your finger gets) and we found that in some circumstances this reaction was able to remove our original ObXidian coating. But not anymore!
No nonsense nozzles
As well as making your nozzle easier to clean in between prints, and giving it that gorgeous rainbow shimmer, the low surface energy of the coating on ObXiDian 500 nozzles also improves print reliability. During printing, small amounts of filament will inevitably find their way onto the external surface of a nozzle. Maybe it’s an imperfect retraction or a slight ooze during a long travel move. Whatever the cause, over time these little whisps can combine together, and if you get unlucky, they form the dreaded nozzle blob!
By lowering the surface energy of the nozzle, we essentially reduce the size these blobs of plastic need to be before they release and drop off the nozzle back into the print. This improves print reliability because big blobs on the nozzle are more likely to interact with the print and cause a failure. It also stops light-coloured filaments from degrading and discolouring on the nozzle before later releasing back into the print.
Interesting Fact: This non-stick layer is what gives ObXidian and ObXiDian 500 nozzles their unique iridescent/rainbow look.
Don’t think of the coating as a homogenous structure like a coat of paint over the part, it’s made up from multiple layers, each performing different jobs, that are blended together. Because of the way that the coating is deposited on the nozzles the thickness of the topcoat does vary slightly and it’s this difference in thickness that we see as iridescence (red light 625-750nm and violet light has a wavelength of 380-450nm, so this gives you an idea of the thickness of the very top layer in the coating).
Who’s getting the big D treatment?
Now, we know what you’re thinking. Printing even the most demanding filaments up to 500°C, with a long-lasting nozzle that also gives me high quality prints with no defects and strong layers? Sign me up!
We’re so excited to share the benefits of ObXiDian 500 with the 3D printing community that we’re rolling them out across all our major product lines. We want as many users as possible to be able to avoid poor print quality and instead, get perfect 3D prints every time.
Thinking of buying a Prusa soon? Well good news is that you can buy your nozzles from them here too! But no matter what printer you’re using, there’s a premium upgrade waiting for you. 
