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3D Printing News Briefs: September 4, 2018

In the first 3D Printing News Briefs for this month, we’re starting with some education and business, followed by some how-to videos and a couple of things to ponder. PrintLab’s curriculum is going global, while the province of Victoria in Australia has invested in 3D printing. A Ukrainian company has introduced a new type of metal 3D printing, and you can learn how to cast concrete 3D printed molds and make an etched glass build surface for your 3D printer by checking out two new YouTube videos. There could be even more uses for construction 3D printing than previously thought, and a thermal view of a model being 3D printed on an Ultimaker begs an important question.

PrintLab Portal Available in Polish

3D printing curriculum provider PrintLab, based in the UK, set up an online portal in January, called PrintLab Classroom, to help teachers better integrate 3D printing into their lesson plans. Now that the English version of the learning platform has been successfully launched, PrintLab is working to offer the curriculum portal in multiple languages. Now, thanks to a collaboration with Polish 3D technology and education supplier Paxer, a new PrintLab reseller, the platform is available in Polish, with translations in Spanish and Chinese in the works.

“After a great deal of initial interest and success, we are very pleased to be able to offer our curriculum to Polish students and educators. Our mission has always been to prepare the next generation for their future careers by addressing the widening skills gap and we are now able to do this across multiple regions. Our focus is on finding partners that share our belief and vision and in Paxer, we have found a motivated team that has technology in education at its core,” said Nick Mayor, Co-Founder at PrintLab.

“The aim is to inspire students and teachers around the world to adopt technology into lessons. We have started with Polish, however that is just the beginning. Spanish and Chinese translation is currently being undertaken which is part of our plan of inspiring minds on a global scale and providing teachers worldwide with comprehensive lesson packages, developed alongside teachers.”

New Virtual 3D Printing Hub in Victoria

The manufacturing industry in Victoria, the second most populous state in Australia, contributes $27.7 billion to the Victorian economy. Now, businesses there will be able to connect with additive manufacturing technology and produce products more easily and quickly, thanks to a new dedicated virtual hub. Ben Carroll, the Minister for Industry and Employment, joined Member for Carrum, Sonya Kilkenny, at the Carrum Downs facility of 3D printing company Objective3D to make the announcement this week. The hub, supported by $2 million from the Victorian Government and delivered by Australian Manufacturing Technology Institute Limited – a national body representing manufacturing technology suppliers and users – should improve access for local companies to the state’s 3D printing infrastructure.

Carroll said, “3D printing is a game changer for manufacturing – which is why we’re backing the technology so more local companies can reap the benefits.

“This new hub will help local manufactures innovate, become more productive and excel in future industries.”

xBeam Metal 3D Printing

Ukrainian company NVO Chervona Hvilya has a new form of metal 3D printing it calls xBeam, which it says “was born to make the best features of Additive Manufacturing available for wide industrial community and to prove that definition of Additive manufacturing as the Third Industrial Revolution is reality.” The company has spent roughly four decades developing electron beam technologies for multiple applications, and its exclusive xBeam technology was born from this experience.

With xBeam, the company says you won’t have to decide between high productivity, accuracy, and a defect-free metal structure – its patented solution delivers all three. xBeam is based on the ability of a gas-discharge electron beam gun to generate a hollow, conical beam, which can offer “unique physical conditions for precisely controllable metal deposition and forming of desired metal structure in produced 3D metal part.”

Using 3D Printed Molds to Create Cast Concrete Products

Industrial designer Rob Chesney, the founder of New Zealand-based bespoke design and fabrication studio Further Fabrication, recently published a tutorial on the studio’s YouTube channel about creating cast concrete objects and products with 3D printed molds and no silicone at all. For the purposes of the video, Chesney used 3D printed molds for faceted candle holders.

“In the first half of this video we’re gonna deal with the design and the creation of the molds using the computer and 3D printing,” Chesney said. “In the second half we’ll show you how you go about casting products with some tips and tricks thrown in there along the way.”

To learn how to make your own cast concrete candle holder with a 3D printed mold, check out the Further Fabrication video:

Etched Glass Build Plate

Another new video tutorial, this time by YouTube user MrDabrudda, shows viewers how to make an etched glass build surface for a 3D printer. What’s even better, the plate does not require you to use tape, a glue stick, or even hairspray to get your prints to adhere to it.

“So I’m tired of having to respray the hairspray on my glass bed for my 3D printer, so what I’m doing is taking a 180 grit diamond stone and a tub of water, and I’m going around on here and roughing this up,” MrDabrudda said.

To learn the rest of the process, check out the rest of the video:

Construction 3D Printing Uses

A 3D printed Volvo CE workshop tool

While there are still those who may think that construction 3D printing is all hype, that’s not the case. Sure, maybe it’s not possible to create a fully 3D printed house in a day in every country in the world, but we’re already able to create large-scale, 3D printed objects, with impressive lifespans and tensile strengths, out of a multitude of materials. There are also other applications in construction 3D printing than just houses. Caterpillar has long been interested in 3D printing, and thanks to its early work in research engineering cells, prototyping, and 3D printing tools for the assembly line, it’s now moved into commercial production of nearly 100 components; however, all but one were made of polymers.

“We’ve made a lot of progress with this technology, but not to the point where we are comfortable putting it into, for example, safety equipment or the manufacture of large metal parts, although we are doing a lot of research in that area,” said Don Jones, Caterpillar’s General Manager, Global Parts Strategy and Transformation.

Another OEM with developed 3D printing capabilities is Volvo CE, which stands for Construction Equipment. As of right now, the company has 3D printed spare parts such as plastic coverings, cab elements, and sections of air conditioning units.

“It’s especially good for older machines where the parts that have worn out are no longer made efficiently in traditional production methods,” said Jasenko Lagumdzija, Volvo CE’s manager of Business Support. “Producing new parts by 3D printing cuts down on time and costs, so it’s an efficient way of helping customers.”

Can Thermal Imaging Improve 3D Printing Results?

Usually when I think of thermal imaging, the movie Predator immediately comes to mind – the alien creature tracked its human prey by their body heat signatures. But this technology can also be applied to 3D printing. About two years ago, CNC machine manufacturing company Thermwood Corporation added real-time thermographic imaging as a standard feature on its LSAM (Large Scale Additive Manufacturing) systems. This imaging makes it far easier to adjust and control the entire 3D printing process, which will result in excellent 3D printed structures as a result.

Using thermal imaging can help create high-quality, large tools that are solid and void-free enough to maintain a vacuum, without any necessary surface coating or sealing. To ensure good prints, the temperature of the print surface needs to be controlled, which is tricky to do. But thermal imaging can help operators remain in the optimal range of temperatures. Thermwood seems to be ahead of the times with its thermal imaging capabilities.

A new video was recently posted by YouTube user Julian Danzer showing a large BFR winged rear section model being fabricated on an Ultimaker 3D printer; the video switches about 30 seconds in to a thermal view of the print job. The quality isn’t great, but it makes me think – should all 3D printers come standard with FLIR cameras now? If thermal imaging can really help improve the results of 3D prints, my answer is yes. What do you think?

Discuss these stories and other 3D printing topics at 3DPrintBoard.com or share your thoughts below.

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Microstructure of Powder Bed Fusion 316 L Stainless Steel: Colonies of Cells

(a) Bright-field transmission electron microscopy (TEM) image of the cells oriented perpendicular to the observation direction; (b) Bright-field TEM image of the cells oriented parallel to the observation direction, diffraction pattern illustrates the <100> fcc zone axis orientation of the cells; (c) nanoparticles observed in the microstructure of LPBF 316 L steel marked by arrows; and (d) TEM energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) spectra taken from one of the particle illustrated in (c).

A great deal of work is involved in optimizing materials for additive manufacturing. Porosity is a consistent problem in metal 3D printing, and scientists spend a lot of time studying each metal material to try to minimize or eliminate flaws. In a paper entitled “Microstructure, Solidification Texture, and Thermal Stability of 316 L Stainless Steel Manufactured by Laser Powder Bed Fusion,” a team of researchers examines 316 L stainless steel using techniques including scanning and transition electron microscopy, diffraction methods and atom probe tomography.

Porosity can be eliminated by controlling the laser power and laser scanning speed during the 3D printing process, the researchers point out.

“The final properties are governed by the microstructure of the material,” they continue. “The microstructure of the LPBF material is formed under the conditions of high temperature gradients and solidification rates, far from the ones of conventional materials. This results in the formation of a nonequilibrium microstructure with a unique set of properties. Epitaxial nucleation of cellular colonies has commonly been observed, which results in the solidification texture and anisotropic mechanical properties of LPBF materials.”

(a) Scanning strategy used to manufacture laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) 316 L; (b) microstructure of the LPBF 316 L steel, optical micrograph.

The study, which was conducted over several years, focuses on the metallurgical aspects of the material, as well as its microstructure. The formation of a cellular structure in a molten pool was discussed in relation to the thermal gradient and solidification rate. The correlation between the primary cell spacing and hardness was also discussed in relation to additive manufacturing process parameters and the presence of porosity.

(a) Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) micrograph of the etched cross section of the LPBF 316 L. Colony boundaries are marked by a dashed line; (b) channeling contrast SEM image of a cross section of the LPBF 316 L single track; (c) an electron back-scattering diffraction (EBSD) orientation map of the marked in the (b) region; grains 1, 2, and 3 illustrate the epitaxial nucleation of colonies from the substrate.

Several experiments were carried out with the stainless steel material. Specimens were additively manufactured using a Phenix Systems PM 100 machine. For the microstructural analysis, parameters of 50 W laser power and a 120 mm/s laser scanning speed were used because they provided the lowest porosity. Microstructural analysis was performed using optical and electron microscopy methods.

Several conclusions were reached. The as-built microstructure of the stainless steel consists of colonies of cells, and the boundaries between the cells are not regular high-angle grain boundaries, but rather dislocation structures of 100-300 nm in thickness. The size of the cells in the colonies depends on the manufacturing conditions, and may vary within a single track.

“The segregation of elements on the cell boundaries is presumably a function of the solidification conditions, and it may vary in AM 316 L manufactured at different laser powers and scanning speeds,” the researchers state. “Primary cell spacing is the key parameter that controls strength, following the Hall–Petch relationship. In many cases, deviations from the Hall–Petch relationship can be explained by variations of the primary cell spacing through the LPBF material and porosity.”

Solidification texture was formed by colonies of cells that grew through several layers. The texture was controlled by the manufacturing strategy. Cells within colonies were stable up to 800-900°C, after which point they disappeared. The disappearance of the cells resulted in a decrease in hardness. Colony growth was not significant until 1050 °C.

“Nanoscale oxide particles probably form from surface oxide, or due to oxygen pick up during manufacturing,” the researchers continue. “They are stable and do not coalesce or change shape after heat treatment up to 1050 °C. The contribution of these nanoscale particles to hardness of LPBF 316 L material seems to be insignificant, since after heat treatment the hardness of LPBF 316 L steel approached values typical for conventional coarse-grained material.”

Authors of the paper include Pavel Krakhmalev, Gunnel Fredriksson, Krister Svensson, Igor Yadroitsev, Ina Yadroitsava, Mattias Thuvander, and Ru Peng.

Discuss this and other 3D printing topics at 3DPrintBoard.com or share your thoughts below.

 

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A New Filament Drying Solution Arrives From Apium

It’s an unfortunate fact that a lot of things can go wrong when 3D printing. Many people who are unfamiliar with the technology think that it’s like magic: you just press a button and out pops a finished, perfect part. But with every 3D printing technology comes its own problems, and there are plenty in FDM/FFF technology. Poor adhesion, warping, nozzle clogging, and spectacular meltdowns that seem to happen for no apparent reason – they’re all part of the 3D printing adventure.

One of the biggest issues that causes prints to fail or come out imperfectly is moisture. Many polymer filaments are hydrophilic, which means that they like moisture and will happily absorb it from the air surrounding them – that’s why spools of filament commonly come in airtight containers with little desiccant bags in there with them. This is particularly true for materials like PLA and nylon, which are more hydrophilic than others. So what happens when filament absorbs moisture?

3D printing filaments are made from polymers, which are in turn made up of multiple monomers joined together. Those polymer chains can break down, however, or depolymerize, and one way that this can happen is a process called hydrolysis, which is when a water molecule breaks a polymer chain. So when a supply of filament gets wet and is then extruded, the water inside it vaporizes, causing air bubbles and voids – you’ll know this has happened if you start hearing snapping and crackling noises while printing.

This can weaken material and cause poor inter-layer adhesion, as well as poor surface finish. It’s just not a good thing, but unfortunately it’s all too easy for filament to draw in water from the atmosphere and get messed up. On the bright side, the damage is not irreversible, if you dry the filament out before you extrude it. For this purpose, there are filament-drying products, and one of the newest is the Apium Filament Dryer from German company Apium.

Apium is focused on industrial 3D printing solutions, a leader in PEEK and other high performance polymers. The Apium Filament Dryer was developed in partnership with Singapore’s Purpose AM Systems and promises less oozing, stringy filament caused by moisture absorption, as well as better interlayer adhesion and mechanical properties.

“Through our partnership with Purpose AM, we are launching Apium Filament Dryers and provide our end-users with the complete solution for processing high performance polymers,” said Pinar Karakas, Head of Marketing and Quality Management at Apium. “We offer the unique AM solution with our advanced customer support established by our Service Center experts and forerunner technologies.”

The Apium Filament Dryer has thermally insulated walls, which reduces heat loss, and offers front loading which enables easy filament interchange. It has a rotary desiccant system for the dehumidification of incoming air, as well as a set of HEPA and active carbon filters. It is compatible with all Apium P Series 3D printers and Apium filaments, as well as several other open-system 3D printers.

Apium is ready to ship the filament dryers upon order and offers a 12-month warranty.

Discuss this and other 3D printing topics at 3DPrintBoard.com or share your thoughts below.

 

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US Army Research Lab Scientists Creating Atomic-Level 3D Reconstructions of Specimens

The US Army Research Laboratory (ARL) is responsible for plenty of innovative 3D printing research over the years, such as 3D printing drones and working with recycled 3D printing material. Now, material scientists from the ARL have their sights set on something much smaller that could have a very large impact – analyzing atomic-level metal and ceramic specimens.

Dr. Chad Hornbuckle, a materials scientist with the ARL’s Weapons and Materials Research Directorate, specializes in microstructural characterization using electron microscopes and atom probe tomography (APT), and is working on the atomic-level research. He said that the unique atom probe being used in this research not only sets the standard for accuracy in chemistry, but is also necessary to understanding the interior structure of materials themselves.

“The atom probe gives us a 3-D reconstruction at the atomic level. When you see the reconstruction that’s made up of millions of dots, the dots are actually individual atoms,” Dr. Hornbuckle explained.

“It’s basically the only machine in the world that can do this at the atomic level. There are machines, like transmission electron microscopes, or TEMs, that do chemical analysis, but it is not as accurate as this.”

Dr. Chad Hornbuckle, a materials scientist with the ARL, specializes in atom probe tomography, which analyzes ceramics or metal 1,000 times smaller than a human hair.

Because experiments require consistency, it’s extremely important to maintain a high level of accuracy during research like this.

Dr. Hornbuckle said, “You might have one effect one time, but if the chemistry changes, you get a completely different effect the next time. If you can’t control the chemistry, you can’t control the properties.”

If you thought working at the nanoscale level was small, consider this: the atomic-level specimens being analyzed in this research are roughly 1,000 times smaller than the end of a strand of human hair. Researchers have to create very sharp tips to get the samples ready for analysis, which are used to mill, or sandblast, the materials away using gallium and either a focused ion beam microscope or a dual beam scanning electron microscope. Then they are inserted into the atom probe.

The interior of the probe is a super cold vacuum. Atom samples are ionized with a laser, or a voltage pulse, within the probe’s tip, which causes them to field evaporate from the surface. Then, the evaporated ions are analyzed and identified, which results in a 3D model with a near-atomic spatial resolution.

Atom probe

Dr. Hornbuckle himself developed the probe during his time as a graduate student at the University of Alabama. Army scientists and other researchers now ask him for his help in characterizing samples, and use APT technology to determine which atoms are located where in a material.

Dr. Denise Yin, a postdoctoral fellow at ARL, said, “I can give you one specific example of how it’s helped our research. We were electrodepositing copper in a magnetic field and we found a chemical phase using the atom probe that didn’t otherwise show up in conventional electrodeposition.

“Electrodeposition is a process that creates a thin metal coating.

We were having problems identifying this phase using other methods, but the atom probe told us exactly what it was and how it was distributed.”

Dr. Yin said that the atom probe has “impressive” capabilities:

“You can see the atoms show up in real time. Again, it’s at the nanometer scale, so it’s much finer than all the other characterization techniques. The atom probe told us quite easily that the unknown phase was two different types of a copper hydride phase, and that’s not something that we could have detected using those other methods.”

[Image: ARL]

Only a limited number of these atom probes exist, and the one used by the ARL is one of just several in the US. So you can imagine that many universities hope to use it to analyze their own samples. As part of its Open Campus business model, the lab looks for formal agreements.

ARL Director Dr. Philip Perconti explained, “Open Campus means sharing world-class ARL facilities and research opportunities for our partners. A thriving Open Campus program increases opportunities for technology advancement and the transfer of research knowledge.”

Dr. Hornbuckle said that a partnership with Lehigh University yielded some “important results.”

Army scientists explore materials at the nano-level with the goal of finding stronger or more heat-resistant properties to support the Army of the future.

“One university that we collaborate with is Lehigh University. At first, this collaboration was more of a mutual exchange of expertise, where I analyzed some of their samples in the atom probe and they used their aberration-corrected transmission electron microscope to analyze some of our copper-tantalum sample,” said Dr. Hornbuckle. “We now have a cooperative agreement with them to continue this collaboration.

“I actually ran a nickel-tungsten alloy that was electrodeposited for them and identified and quantified the presence of low atomic number elements such as oxygen and sodium. This resulted in one research journal article with several more in preparation.”

The ARL is also collaborating with Texas A&M University on atomic-level analysis.

“This collaboration initiated due to the Open Campus initiative. I have analyzed a few nickel-titanium alloys that had been 3-D printed. They noticed some nanoscale precipitates within the 3-D printed materials, but were unable to identify them with their TEM,” Dr. Hornbuckle said. “I am trying to determine the chemistry of the phase using the atom probe, which should help to identify it.”

The University of Alabama is another of the ARL’s partners, and this collaboration led to several published research journal articles.

“They have a different version of the atom probe. They have run some our alloys in their version and ours to compare the differences noted in the same material. This material is actually being scaled up through a number of processes that are relevant to the Arm,” Dr. Hornbuckle explained.

In addition to creating important and meaningful connections, these various partnerships also provide the Army with access to equipment not found at the ARL. Then, the knowledge that Army researchers learn through this joint research can be applied to current problems the Army is facing, as well as to developing future relevant materials.

Dr. Hornbuckle said, “When you see things no other human has ever seen before, it’s very cool to think that I’m helping to push the envelope of new modern materials science, which then obviously is used for the Army. Every time we run a new material we think about how we can help the Soldier with this new discovery.”

Discuss this research and other 3D printing topics at 3DPrintBoard.com or share your thoughts below.

[Images: US Army photos by David McNally]

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Evonik Develops PEBA Powder for Polymer 3D Printing

It can be overwhelming to consider the number of materials there are available for 3D printing, and new ones are constantly being developed. It’s not an easy or simple process to create a new 3D printing material, though, which is why materials that are prevalent elsewhere in manufacturing sometimes take some time to arrive in the 3D printing industry. Polyether block amide, or PEBA, is one of those materials. The flexible thermoplastic elastomer has numerous and varied manufacturing applications, but has rarely been seen in 3D printing. However, Evonik has now announced the development of a new PEBA powder for laser sintering, high speed sintering and binder jetting.

PEBA’s benefits include excellent mechanical and dynamic properties, including flexibility, impact resistance, energy return, and fatigue resistance. It is resistant to many chemicals and maintains its properties over a wide range of temperatures. It is used frequently for athletic shoe outsoles, in medical products such as catheters, and in electronics for products such as cable and wire coatings. PEBA can also be used to make textiles. 

3D printed products made from Evonik’s new PEBA powder offer flexibility, chemical resistance and durability over a range of temperatures from -40°C to 90ºC. The powder is well-suited to the manufacture of functional high tech plastic parts, including both prototypes and series production components.

“Flexible polymer materials significantly expand the options for additive manufacturing because they allow us to realize new, demanding applications in attractive markets,” said Fabian Stoever, Senior Product Manager for Polymers at EOS. “In addition, the variety of materials not only enables us to produce individual high-tech functional components, but also to develop much more sophisticated 3D concepts that make use of the entire material range.”

The new PEBA powder was optimized for use in EOS laser sintering systems as part of a development collaboration between EOS and Evonik. It has already been successfully adopted into the material portfolios of several 3D printing service providers. EOS markets the powder under the name “PrimePart ST.”

“New innovative products that are developed in bespoke projects in close cooperation with our customers form an important cornerstone of our organic growth,” said Thomas Große-Puppendahl, Head of the Engineered Products Product Line at Evonik.

Evonik has been producing polymer powders for 3D printing for a while, and the development of PEBA further expands its materials porftolio. The company is a world leader in the production of polyamide 12 (PA 12) powders, which have been used in 3D printing for more than two decades. With help from EOS, Evonik will now introduce PEBA to the 3D printing world, opening up the door to a variety of new applications.

If you’d like to learn more about PEBA and other high performance 3D printing materials from Evonik in person, the company will be at Booth #4117 at the plastics processing trade fair Fakuma, which is taking place from October 16th to 20th in Friedrichshafen, Germany.

Discuss this and other 3D printing topics at 3DPrintBoard.com or share your thoughts below.

 

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3D Printing News Briefs: August 24, 2018

We’re sharing some business news in today’s 3D Printing News Briefs, followed by some interesting research and a cool 3D printed statue. Meld was listed as a finalist in the R&D 100 Awards, and Renishaw has introduced 3D printed versions to its styli range, while there’s an ongoing Digital Construction Grant competition happening in the UK. A researcher from Seoul Tech published a paper about in situ hydrogel in the field of click chemistry, while researchers in Canada focused on the Al10SiMg alloy for their study. Finally, an Arcam technician tested the Q20plus EBM 3D printer by making a unique titanium statue of Thomas Edison.

Meld is R&D 100 Awards Finalist

The global R&D 100 Awards have gone on for 56 years, highlighting the top 100 innovations each year in categories including Process/Prototyping, IT/Electrical, Mechanical Devices/Materials, Analytical/Test, and Software/Services, in addition to Special Recognition Awards for things like Green Tech and Market Disruptor Products. This year, over 50 judges from various industries selected finalists for the awards, one of which is MELD Manufacturing, an already award-winning company with a unique, patented no-melt process for altering, coating, joining, repairing, and 3D printing metal.

“Our mission with MELD is to revolutionize manufacturing and enable the design and manufacture of products not previously possible. MELD is a whole new category of additive manufacturing,” said MELD Manufacturing Corporation CEO Nanci Hardwick. “For example, we’re able to work with unweldable materials, operate our equipment in open-atmosphere, produce much larger parts that other additive processes, and avoid the many issues associated with melt-based technologies.”

The winners will be announced during a ceremony at the Waldorf Astoria in Orlando on November 16th.

Renishaw Introduces 3D Printed Styli

This month, Renishaw introduced a 3D printed stylus version to its already wide range of available styli. The company uses its metal powder bed fusion technology to provide customers with complex, turnkey styli solutions in-house, with the ability to access part features that other styli can’t reach. 3D printing helps to decrease the lead time for custom styli, and can manufacture strong but lightweight titanium styli with complex structures and shapes. Female titanium threads (M2/M3/M4/M5) can be added to fit any additional stylus from Renishaw’s range, and adding a curved 3D printed stylus to its REVO 5-axis inspection system provides flexibility when accessing a component’s critical features. Components with larger features need a larger stylus tip, which Renishaw can now provide in a 3D printed version.

“For precision metrology, there is no substitute for touching the critical features of a component to gather precise surface data,” Renishaw wrote. “Complex parts often demand custom styli to inspect difficult-to-access features. AM styli can access features of parts that other styli cannot reach, providing a flexible, high-performance solution to complex inspection challenges.”

Digital Construction Grant Competition

Recently, a competition opened up in the UK for organizations in need of funding to help increase productivity, performance, and quality in the construction sector. As part of UK Research and Innovation, the organization Innovate UK – a fan of 3D printing – will invest up to £12.5 million on innovative projects meant to help improve and transform construction in the UK. Projects must be led by a for-profit business in the UK, begin this December and end up December of 2020, and address the objectives of the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund on Transforming Construction. The competition is looking specifically for projects that can improve the construction lifecycle’s three main stages:

  • Designing and managing buildings through digitally-enabled performance management
  • Constructing quality buildings using a manufacturing approach
  • Powering buildings with active energy components and improving build quality

Projects that demonstrate scalable solutions and cross-sector collaboration will be prioritized, and results should lead to a more streamlined process that decreases delays, saves on costs, and improves outputs, productivity, and collaborations. The competition closes at noon on Wednesday, September 19. You can find more information here.

Click Bioprinting Research

Researcher Janarthanan Gopinathan with the Seoul University of Science Technology (Seoul Tech) published a study about click chemistry, which can be used to create multifunctional hydrogel biomaterials for bioprinting ink and tissue engineering applications. These materials can form 3D printable hydrogels that are able to retain live cells, even under a swollen state, without losing their mechanical integrity. In the paper, titled “Click Chemistry-Based Injectable Hydrogels and Bioprinting Inks for Tissue Engineering Applications,” Gopinathan says that regenerative medicine and tissue engineering applications need biomaterials that can be quickly and easily reproduced, are able to generate complex 3D structures that mimic native tissue, and be biodegradable and biocompatible.

“In this review, we present the recent developments of in situ hydrogel in the field of click chemistry reported for the tissue engineering and 3D bioinks applications, by mainly covering the diverse types of click chemistry methods such as Diels–Alder reaction, strain-promoted azide-alkyne cycloaddition reactions, thiol-ene reactions, oxime reactions and other interrelated reactions, excluding enzyme-based reactions,” the paper states.

“Interestingly, the emergence of click chemistry reactions in bioink synthesis for 3D bioprinting have shown the massive potential of these reaction methods in creating 3D tissue constructs. However, the limitations and challenges involved in the click chemistry reactions should be analyzed and bettered to be applied to tissue engineering and 3D bioinks. The future scope of these materials is promising, including their applications in in situ 3D bioprinting for tissue or organ regeneration.”

Analysis of Solidification Patterns and Microstructural Developments for Al10SiMg Alloy

a) Secondary SEM surface shot of Al10SiMg powder starting stock, (b) optical micrograph and (c) high-magnification secondary SEM image of the cross-sectional view of the internal microstructure with the corresponding inset shown in (ci); (d) the printed sample and schematic representation of scanning strategy; The bi-directional scan vectors in Layer n+1 are rotated by 67° counter clockwise with respect to those at Layer n.

A group of researchers from Queen’s University and McGill University, both in Canada, explain the complex solidification pattern that occurs during laser powder bed fusion 3D printing of the Al10SiMg alloy in a new paper, titled “Solidification pattern, microstructure and texture development in Laser Powder Bed Fusion (LPBF) of Al10SiMg alloy.”

The paper also characterizes the evolution of the α-Al cellular network, grain structure and texture development, and brought to light many interesting facts, including that the grains’ orientation will align with that of the α-Al cells.

The abstract reads, “A comprehensive analysis of solidification patterns and microstructural development is presented for an Al10SiMg sample produced by Laser Powder Bed Fusion (LPBF). Utilizing a novel scanning strategy that involves counter-clockwise rotation of the scan vector by 67° upon completion of each layer, a relatively randomized cusp-like pattern of protruding/overlapping scan tracks has been produced along the build direction. We show that such a distribution of scan tracks, as well as enhancing densification during LPBF, reduces the overall crystallographic texture in the sample, as opposed to those normally achieved by commonly-used bidirectional or island-based scanning regimes with 90° rotation. It is shown that, under directional solidification conditions present in LPBF, the grain structure is strictly columnar throughout the sample and that the grains’ orientation aligns well with that of the α-Al cells. The size evolution of cells and grains within the melt pools, however, is shown to follow opposite patterns. The cells’/grains’ size distribution and texture in the sample are explained via use of analytical models of cellular solidification as well as the overall heat flow direction and local solidification conditions in relation to the LPBF processing conditions. Such a knowledge of the mechanisms upon which microstructural features evolve throughout a complex solidification process is critical for process optimization and control of mechanical properties in LPBF.”

Co-authors include Hong Qin, Vahid Fallah, Qingshan Dong, Mathieu Brochu, Mark R. Daymond, and Mark Gallerneault.

3D Printed Titanium Thomas Edison Statue

Thomas Edison statue, stacked and time lapse build

Oskar Zielinski, a research and development technician at Arcam EBM, a GE Additive company, is responsible for maintaining, repairing, and modifying the company’s electron beam melting (EBM) 3D printers. Zielinski decided that he wanted to test out the Arcam EBM Q20plus 3D printer, but not with just any old benchmark test. Instead, he decided to create and 3D print a titanium (Ti64) statue of Thomas Edison, the founder of GE. He created 25 pieces and different free-floating net structures inside each of the layers, in order to test out the 3D printer’s capabilities. All 4,300 of the statue’s 90-micron layers were 3D printed in one build over a total of 90 hours, with just minimal support between the slices’ outer skins.

The statue stands 387 mm tall, and its interior net structures show off the kind of complicated filigree work that EBM 3D printing is capable of producing. In addition, Zielinski also captured a time lapse, using an Arcam LayerQam, from inside the 3D printer of the statue being printed.

“I am really happy with the result; this final piece is huge,” Zielinski said. “I keep wondering though what Thomas Edison would have thought if someone would have told him during the 19th century about the technology that exists today.”

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Harvard Fellowship Brings Professor and Student Together to Work on 3D Printed Artificial Bone Implants

Growing up in Jordan, University of Sydney biomedical engineering professor Hala Zreiqat, a 2016-2017 Research Fellow at Harvard University’s Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study, originally wanted to be an interior designer, but due to the impracticality of studying the subject in the UK, she graduated with a degree in biology because, as she told the Radcliffe Magazine last year, science “is a bit of art.”

Professor Zreigat eventually moved to Australia to pursue her own medical research, and focused her PhD thesis at the University of New South Wales Medical School on making a titanium alloy used in hip replacements more biologically compatible. Later, she established the University of Sydney’s first tissue-engineering lab, while also building an international network of scientists, clinicians, and engineers. Her goal is to provide better treatment options, through the use of substitute bone able to easily incorporate itself into the body, for the millions of people worldwide who suffer bone loss, because metal was never meant to be part of our bodies.

Professor Zreigat asked, “You can have a material that has brilliant mechanical properties, but if it doesn’t do what you want it to do with cells in the body, what’s the point?”

One of these millions of people with bone loss is Linh Nam, a current Harvard College student and Professor Zreigat’s Summer Radcliffe Research Partner.

“When I found out I was hired by Hala to be part of this project, I was really excited and was really looking forward to working with her and hearing from her perspective and contributing my part to this project,” said Nam in a Harvard video.

Linh Nam and Hala Zreiqat

The project aims to create a biocompatible, artificial material with the same strength and porosity as real bone using 3D printing – a worthy goal shared by many other researchers around the world.

Professor Zreigat said, “The bone substitute my team and I developed is similar in structure and composition to actual bone; mimics the way real bone withstands loads and deflects impacts; and, like real bone, contains pores that allow blood and nutrients to penetrate it.

“The fact that our material actually kick-starts bone regeneration makes it far superior to other available materials. Each patient has only a limited amount of bone available for grafting, so the demand for synthetic bone substitutes is high.”

As of last year, Professor Zreigat’s team had found a way to generate a porous core of a novel multi-component ceramic using 3D printing. The material is infused with trace elements that are necessary for the formation of bones, like zinc, calcium, and strontium, and is also a good candidate for successfully bridging damaged vertebrae in spinal fusion surgery.

“I think it’s a great opportunity that Radcliffe has brought us to be able to work together and for me to have this chance to know Hala, who’s a leading expert in her field,” said Nam.

Nam, who is working with Professor Zreiqat to introduce 3D printing to the artificial material for orthopedic applications, explained that she would not be able to have this opportunity elsewhere. But while her talent got her in the door, something else about the young student caught Professor Zreiqat’s eye.

“Linh’s application stood out because of her experience in evolution biology,” Professor Zreiqat explained. “I recall when I read her application that there was osteosarcoma in it, but that’s not what really attracted me to Linh’s. And when she walked into my office she was on crutches, and that’s when I’m going, oh my goodness, that’s the one with osteosarcoma, which is cancer of the bones. And I looked at Linh and she had these long surgical marks on her tibia and femur and that’s when I thought it could not have been a better match of having Linh working on the material.”

Nam was diagnosed with osteosarcoma – a cancerous tumor in the bone – when she was just ten years old, and had to have a section of bone removed from her leg,” which, as Nam explained, left “the question of what could be put into that gap.”

Bone from a bone bank was used to fill in the gap left by removing the original bone, and a metal plate was added to hold everything together. According to Nam, there were a lot of complications stemming from the surgery, including the metal parts coming apart and trouble healing, because the bone in the gap was not her own. All in all, she had ten surgeries over a whole decade.

Nam explained, “So I felt that Hala’s project was really meaningful in the sense that it negates the need for metal for patients that have bone defects.”

Professor Zreiqat is a strong advocate for mentoring the younger generation. She has formed strong bonds with many of her ex-research partners, and hopes that this “will be the case with Linh as well.”

These types of fellowships have also allowed her to get some help from new eyes in forging ahead with her innovative research.

“I’m hoping for this medical technology to reach to the patient as close as 2019, and we’re very, very close to that.”

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New Study Shows that SLM 3D Printing Has High Potential for Fabricating Metallic Glass Components

Metallic glass, also known as amorphous metal, was first introduced in the early 1960s, and since then, it seems that everyone wants in on the action. The material is valued for its many exceptional properties, such as low stiffness, near-theoretical strength, high corrosion resistance, and large elastic strain limits. Bulk metallic glasses (BMG), which have characteristic specimen sizes in excess of 1 mm, have been explored successfully for for glass formers.

It’s not easy to produce metallic glasses with complex geometry, because the molten alloys must be cooled rapidly to move past the nucleation and growth of crystals, and most commonly used methods, such as melt spinning, casting, and powder metallurgy, are limited in both complex geometry and dimension. That’s why it’s so important to continue exploring and developing more novel processing routes for producing amorphous components.

A schematic illustration of SLM-YZ250 3D printer: (a) operating mode of the device; (b) processing scanning pattern.

A team of researchers from the University of Science and Technology Beijing have been investigating the use of selective laser melting (SLM, also called DMLS, Direct Metal Laser Sintering, Powder Bed Fusion, Laser Powder Bed Fusion) 3D printing to fabricate Fe-based metallic glass powder with unrestricted, complex geometry. This specific technology offers very high cooling rates, which is important for glass formation of most BMGs, and can apply various processing parameters involving laser energy density to melt the metal powder.

The researchers recently published a paper, titled “Fabrication and characterization of Fe-based metallic glasses by Selective Laser Melting,” in the Optics and Laser Technology journal. The paper details SLM’s high potential for 3D printing metallic glass components with complex geometries.

The abstract reads, “Fe-based metallic glasses (MGs) can be potential structural materials owing to an exceptional combination of strength, corrosion and wear resistance properties. However, many traditional methods are difficult to fabricate Fe-based MGs with complex geometry. In this study, a new metallurgical processing technology, selective laser melting (SLM), was employed to fabricate Fe-Cr-Mo-W-Mn-C-Si-B metallic glasses. The microstructure, thermal stability and mechanical properties of the as-fabricate samples processing with different laser energy density have been investigated by X-Ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and nano-hardness. Thanks to the high cooling rates of SLM, the crystalline phases in the gas-atomized powder almost completely disappeared and nearly fully amorphous structure parts were obtained after SLM processing. By choosing appropriate parameters, the size and quantity of the pores were reduced effectively and the relative density of the samples can reach values of over 96%. Although additional work is required to remove the residual porosity and avoid the formation of cracks during processing, the present results contribute to the development of Fe-based bulk metallic glasses parts with complex geometry via the SLM.”

(a) SEM secondary electron image of the gas-atomized powder; (b) SEM back-scattered image of the cross-section of the powder.

Fe-based BMGs are important for their unique combination of high physical, chemical, and mechanical properties, low affinity towards oxygen, and the fact that the raw material is less expensive than other commercial BMGs. So the researchers used a Fe-based metallic system Fe-Cr-Mn-Mo-W-B-C-Si with large glass forming ability (GFA) for the study, and used X-Ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) to investigate structural variations between the original powder and the SLM 3D printer parts.

Samples prepared with different laser energy density.

According to the powder’s morphology, the surfaces are very smooth, which results in good flowability. But, the team also observed that micro-pores were formed by trapped glass, and that crystallization did occur in a small amount of the powder, due to the fact that, as the researchers explained, “the cooling rate during gas atomization is not high enough to suppress crystallization.”

However, the crystalline phases in the gas-atomized powder disappeared after SLM 3D printing.

Samples were 3D printed with different laser energy densities, in order to investigate the metallic glasses’ mechanical properties and microstructural evolution. By choosing the appropriate parameters, the researchers were able to successfully 3D print high quality Fe-based metallic glasses.

“At present it is great challenge to produce large-scale glassy alloys in sophisticated geometries with the existing technologies. SLM technology, including heating the powder to melting in very short time and then the melting pool rapidly solidifying procedures, provides new opportunities for the creation of large, geometry freedom of metallic glass components,” the researchers explained. “From the results above, we noticed that although the as-received powder had partially crystallized, the powder experienced a quickly laser processing procedure with high cooling rates, leading to nearly fully amorphous structure. This phenomenon proves that under optimized SLM processing conditions, the nucleation and crystallization are inhibited, and amorphous structure can be acquired.”

They also noted that to improve the quality of the SLM 3D printed parts by decreasing micro-cracks and pores, further fine-tuning of the processing parameters is necessary.

A selection of the as-built parts.

The researchers concluded, “In addition, the preparation process of the powder system still needs to be optimized, and ensuring a fully amorphous structure powders can be obtained which eliminates crystallization in the SLM parts. The present results confirm that additive manufacturing by SLM represents an alternative processing method for the preparation of bulk metallic glass components without limitations in size and intricacy. The processing method and conditions are in principle available for a large variety of metallic glasses production.”

Co-authors of the paper include X.D. Nong, X.L. Zhou, and Y.X. Ren with the university’s State Key Laboratory for Advanced Metals and Materials.

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Military Researchers Present Work on Recycled 3D Printing Material

[Image: Nicole Zander, Army Research Laboratory]

The US military has made no secret of its enthusiasm for 3D printing, and lately has taken a creative, eco-friendly approach to the technology, looking into the recycling of water bottles for 3D printing material. Using water bottles, cardboard and other materials found on base for 3D printing could help reduce dependence on outside supply chains, improve operational readiness and offer greater safety. Normally, soldiers at remote bases or on the battlefield have to wait weeks for replacement parts, but by 3D printing them instead from materials that are readily at hand, they could eliminate that waiting time and become more self-sufficient.

The military researchers presented their work this week at the 256th National Meeting & Exposition of the American Chemical Society.

“Ideally, soldiers wouldn’t have to wait for the next supply truck to receive vital equipment,” said Nicole Zander, PhD. “Instead, they could basically go into the cafeteria, gather discarded water bottles, milk jugs, cardboard boxes and other recyclable items, then use those materials as feedstocks for 3D printers to make tools, parts and other gadgets.”

According to the US Government Accountability Office, the Department of Defense has an inventory of 5 million items distributed through eight supply chains in order to keep military personnel supplied with food, fuel, ammunition and spare parts. Few of these items are stockpiled at front-line locations, however, meaning that shortages can occur at critical times. Many of these front-line locations do have 3D printers, but they often have to wait an extended period of time for feedstock to be replenished.

Nicole Zander, ARL, demonstrates equipment for Capt. Anthony Molnar, U.S. Marine Corps. [Image: Jhi Scott/US Army]

Zander, along with Marine Corps Captain Anthony Molnar and colleagues at the US Army Research Laboratory, has been investigating recycling PET plastic, which is commonly found in water and soda bottles. They determined that filament produced from recycled PET was just as strong as commercially available 3D printer filament. The team used the recycled PET filament to 3D print a vehicle radio bracket, which normally has a long lead time. The process required about 10 water bottles and took about two hours to 3D print.

Originally, the researchers found that other types of plastic, like polypropylene (PP), which is found in yogurt and cottage cheese containers, and polystyrene (PS), used in plastic utensils, were not practical for 3D printing, but some tinkering made them more useful. They strengthened the PP by mixing it with cardboard, wood fibers and other cellulose waste materials, and they also blended PS with PP to make a strong and flexible filament.

The team used a process called solid-state shear pulverization to create composite PP/cellulose materials. Shredded plastic and paper, cardboard or wood flour was pulverized in a twin-screw extruder to generate a fine powder, which was then melted and processed into filament. The researchers tested the new composites and discovered that they had improved mechanical properties that could be used to 3D print strong objects.

Zander and her team are building a mobile recycling center that will allow trained soldiers to make 3D printing filaments out of plastic waste. They are also looking into ways to 3D print from plastic pellets instead of filament, which could allow for the printing of larger objects.

“We still have a lot to learn about how to best process these materials and what kinds of additives will improve their properties,” Zander said. “We’re just scratching the surface of what we can ultimately do with these discarded plastics.”

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3D Printing News Briefs: August 21, 2018

We’ve got plenty of business news for you in today’s 3D Printing News Briefs, and a little scientific research as well. Kelyniam Global has acquired new 3D printing technology, while Rostec makes an investment in technology. One of the earliest SpaceX employees is now an advisor for another aerospace company, the Youngstown Business Incubator has received a federal grant, and SAE International recently hosted a 3D printing webinar. Auburn University has been chosen as the site of a new National Center of Additive Manufacturing Excellence, and a new study discusses 4D printed elastic ceramics.

Kelyniam Global Adds New 3D Printing Capabilities

Using medical models for surgical pre-planning is almost a clinical standard these days. In an effort to increase its current medical modeling skills, custom 3D printed cranial implant manufacturer Kelyniam Global, which works with health systems and surgeons to improve cost-of-care and clinical outcomes, announced that it has expanded its 3D printing capabilities with the acquisition of new technology. This new technology aligns with the company’s reputation as a premium supplier of cranial implants requiring excellence in design and quick turnaround times.

“This state-of-the-art equipment will enable Kelyniam to produce certain medical models on the same 24-hour turnaround schedule we offer for cranial implants. The ability to rapidly print ultrahigh resolution models with high accuracy across our entire platform is a significant differentiator in our industry,” said Kelyniam COO Chris Breault.

Rostec Investing in Industrial 3D Printing Development

Russia’s state technologies corporation Rostec (also Rostek and Rostekh), which develops products for high-tech and communication systems, has invested nearly 3 billion rubles to create a specialized center for industrial 3D printing. The Center for Additive Technologies (CAC), with a goal of reducing the amount of time and money it takes to launch new products, will offer customers a full range of services and advanced 3D printers. The CAC’s main task will be introducing industrial 3D printing to high-tech industries that could really use it.

“Industrial 3D printing is becoming one of the indispensable attributes of modern industry. We see the high potential of this technology and introduce it into our production practice,” said Anatoly Serdyukov, the Industrial Director of the aviation cluster at Rostekh State Corporation. “For example, in the JDC today, about three tons of parts per year are produced by the additive technology method. The holding plans to widely use them in the serial production of promising Russian gas turbine engines, which will be certified in 2025 – 2030. The creation of a specialized center will expand the scope of this technology and produce parts for such industries as aircraft building, space, high technology medicine, automotive industry.”

Project participants calculate that the CAC’s first pilot batch of parts will be manufactured there sometime in 2019.

Former SpaceX Employee Becomes Advisor to Relativity Space

Aerospace company Relativity Space hopes to one day 3D print an entire rocket in an effort to lower the cost of space travel, and has been working hard to achieve this goal over the last few years. The company has fired up its 3D printed engine over 100 times so far, and just a few months ago received $35 million in Series B Funding. Now, Relativity Space has announced that Tim Buzza, one of the very first employees at SpaceX – another company working to 3D print rockets – is one of its official advisors.

Jordan Noone, Relativity Space Co-Founder, said “When I was at SpaceX, Tim’s stellar reputation for breadth and depth of engineering and operations was legendary in the industry.”

Buzza spent 12 years helping to develop SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon spacecraft and will advise Relativity Space on organizing the company structure, launch site selection and trades, rocket architecture, structures and avionics, and more.

Federal Grant Awarded to Youngstown Business Incubator

The Youngstown Business Incubator (YBI) is about to receive some new 3D printing software and hardware, thanks to a federal grant. Recently, the Appalachian Regional Commission awarded $185,000 in federal funding to YBI. The new 3D printers and 3D printing software that the grant will fund, in addition to being a boon for YBI, will also help to strengthen its frequent area partners Youngstown State University (YSU) and America Makes.

“Each additional piece of equipment further strengthen us as a national and international leader in additive manufacturing technology and this is a key part of that process,” said Michael Hripko, YSU’s Associative Vice President for Research.

SAE International Recently Held Additive Manufacturing Webinar

Last week, global engineering organization SAE International hosted an hour-long additive manufacturing webinar, called “Considerations When Integrating Additive Manufacturing into Aerospace and Ground Vehicle Development and Production Environment,” for members of the mobility engineering community. The discussion, moderated by the organization’s Senior Global Product Manager Audra Ziegenfuss, was led by four guest speakers: Dr. John Hart, the Director of MIT’s Center for Additive and Digital Advanced Production Technologies (ADAPT); Bill Harris, a Technical Fellow with Lockheed Martin; and Adam Rivard, the Additive Manufacturing Director for LAI International, Inc.

Topics covered during SAE International’s webinar last week included novel AM methods that translate to automotive and aerospace applications, the risks involved in introducing 3D printed, flight-critical parts, and the anticipated timeline for general acceptance of 3D printed parts by aerospace customers.

Auburn University Site of New National Center of AM Excellence

Recently, Auburn University in Alabama, ASTM International, and NASA launched two new centers of excellence in additive manufacturing with the shared goal of speeding up research and development, standardization and innovation in 3D printing. Researchers at Auburn’s National Center for Additive Manufacturing Excellence (NCAME), will conduct interdisciplinary research, while also striving to grow effective collaboration between industry, government, academia, and not-for-profit.

“The Center of Excellence is going to facilitate us bringing together the best technical experts in industry, government, and academia, and that’s going to help us develop the very best standards for this emerging technology,” said Katharine Morgan, the President of ASTM International.

New Study On 4D Printed Elastic Ceramics

3D printing EDCs. (A) 3D printed large-scale elastomeric honeycomb. (B) 3D printed microlattices and (C) honeycombs of PDMS NCs and first EDCs and second EDCs.

Shape-morphing assembly is a great technology for applications in 4D printing, biomaterials, life sciences, and robotics, and multiple materials like ceramics, silicone, and polymers are used. But, we’ve not yet seen much in the way of ceramic structures derived from soft precursors that allow for elastic deformation. Polymer-derived ceramics (PDCs) have some excellent properties, such as high thermal stability and chemical resistance to oxidation and corrosion, and their microstructures can be fine-tuned through tailored polymer systems.

While we’re seeing a lot in the way of 3D printing soft materials, current ceramic precursors are not flexible and stretchable. Guo Liu, Yan Zhao, Ge Wu, and Jian Lu with the City University of Hong Kong published a paper, titled “Origami and 4D printing of elastomer-derived ceramic structures,” that explains how they developed silicone rubber matrix nanocomposites (NCs) that can be 3D printed and deformed into elastomer structures with complex shapes and transformed into mechanically strong EDCs.

The abstract reads, “Four-dimensional (4D) printing involves conventional 3D printing followed by a shape-morphing step. It enables more complex shapes to be created than is possible with conventional 3D printing. However, 3D-printed ceramic precursors are usually difficult to be deformed, hindering the development of 4D printing for ceramics. To overcome this limitation, we developed elastomeric poly(dimethylsiloxane) matrix nanocomposites (NCs) that can be printed, deformed, and then transformed into silicon oxycarbide matrix NCs, making the growth of complex ceramic origami and 4D-printed ceramic structures possible. In addition, the printed ceramic precursors are soft and can be stretched beyond three times their initial length. Hierarchical elastomer-derived ceramics (EDCs) could be achieved with programmable architectures spanning three orders of magnitude, from 200 μm to 10 cm. A compressive strength of 547 MPa is achieved on the microlattice at 1.6 g cm−3. This work starts a new chapter of printing high-resolution complex and mechanically robust ceramics, and this origami and 4D printing of ceramics is cost-efficient in terms of time due to geometrical flexibility of precursors. With the versatile shape-morphing capability of elastomers, this work on origami and 4D printing of EDCs could lead to structural applications of autonomous morphing structures, aerospace propulsion components, space exploration, electronic devices, and high-temperature microelectromechanical systems.”

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