Additive manufacturing, also known as 3D printing, rapid prototyping or freeform fabrication, is ‘the process of joining materials to make objects from 3D model data, usually layer upon layer, as opposed to subtractive manufacturing methodologies’ such as machining.
The use of Additive Manufacturing (AM) with metal powders is a new and growing industry sector with many of its leading companies based in Europe. It became a suitable process to produce complex metal net shape parts, and not only prototypes, as before.
Additive manufacturing now enables both a design and industrial revolution, in various industrial sectors such as aerospace, energy, automotive, medical, tooling and consumer goods.
Additive manufacturing process :
Additive manufacturing is the « process of joining materials to make objects from 3D model data, usually layer upon layer, as opposed to subtractive manufacturing methodologies, such as traditional machining.” Additive manufacturing technologies for metals are numerous, hence the development of a wide variety of terms and acronyms, as can be seen in the graph below. But today additive manufacturing is the most common term in industry markets while 3D printing is more used in the consumer market.
Material Extrusion : Fuse deposition modelling (FDM) is a common material extrusion process and is trademarked by the company Stratasys. Material is drawn through a nozzle, where it is heated and is then deposited layer by layer. The nozzle can move horizontally and a platform moves up and down vertically after each new layer is deposited. It is a commonly used technique used on many inexpensive, domestic and hobby 3D printers.
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The process has many factors that influence the final model quality but has great potential and viability when these factors are controlled successfully. Whilst FDM is similar to all other 3D printing processes, as it builds layer by layer, it varies in the fact that material is added through a nozzle under constant pressure and in a continuous stream. This pressure must be kept steady and at a constant speed to enable accurate results (Gibson et al., 2010). Material layers can be bonded by temperature control or through the use of chemical agents. Material is often added to the machine in spool form as shown in the diagram.
Material Extrusion – Step by Step
1. First layer is built as nozzle deposits material where required onto the cross sectional area of first object slice. 2. The following layers are added on top of previous layers. 3. Layers are fused together upon deposition as the material is in a melted state.
Advantages of the material extrusion
Process include use of readily available ABS plastic, which can produce models with good structural properties, close to a final production model. In low volume cases, this can be a more economical method than using injection moulding Accuracy and speed are low when compared to other processes and the quality of the final model is limited to material nozzle thickness When using the process for components where a high tolerance must be achieved, gravity and surface tension must be accounted
Sheet Lamination 2 M.ANIL KUMAR UNIT -I
Sheet lamination processes include ultrasonic additive manufacturing (UAM) and laminated object manufacturing (LOM). The Ultrasonic Additive Manufacturing process uses sheets or ribbons of metal, which are bound together using ultrasonic welding. The process does require additional cnc machining and removal of the unbound metal, often during the welding process. Laminated object manufacturing (LOM) uses a similar layer by layer approach but uses paper as material and adhesive instead of welding. The LOM process uses a cross hatching method during the printing process to allow for easy removal post build. Laminated objects are often used for aesthetic and visual models and are not suitable for structural use. UAM uses metals and includes aluminium, copper, stainless steel and titanium (Ultrasonic Additive Manufacturing Overview, 2014). The process is low temperature and allows for internal geometries to be created. The process can bond different materials and requires relatively little energy, as the metal is not melted.
Sheet Lamination – Step by Step
1. The material is positioned in place on the cutting bed. 2. The material is bonded in place, over the previous layer, using the adhesive. 3. The required shape is then cut from the layer, by laser or knife. 4. The next layer is added. 5. Steps two and three can be reversed and alternatively, the material can be cut before being positioned and bonded.
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Laminating (LOM) is one of the first additive manufacturing techniques created and uses a variety of sheet material, namely paper. Benefits include the use of A4 paper, which is readily available and inexpensive, as well as a relatively simple and inexpensive setup, when compared to others.
The Ultrasonic Additive Manufacturing (UAM) process uses sheets of metal, which are bound together using ultrasonic welding. The process does require additional CNC machining of the unbound metal. Unlike LOM, the metal cannot be easily removed by hand and unwanted material must be removed by machining. Material saving metallic tape of 0.150mm thick and 25mm wide does however, result in less material to cut off afterwards. Milling can happen after each layer is added or after the entire process. Metals used include aluminium, copper, stainless steel and titanium. The process is low temperature and allows for internal geometries to be created. One key advantage is that the process can bond different materials and requires relatively little energy as the metal is not melted, instead using a combination of ultrasonic frequency and pressur
Photo polymerisation Vat polymerisation uses a vat of liquid photopolymer resin, out of which the model is constructed layer by layer. An ultraviolet (UV) light is used to cure or harden the resin where required, whilst a platform moves the object being made downwards after each new layer is cured.
As the process uses liquid to form objects, there is no structural support from the material during the build phase., unlike powder based methods, where support is given from the unbound material. In this case, support structures will often need to be added. Resins are cured using a process of photo polymerisation (Gibson et al., 2010) or UV light, where the light is directed across the surface of the resin with the use of motor controlled mirrors (Grenda, 2009). Where the resin comes in contact with the light, it cures or hardens.
Photo polymerisation – Step by Step
1. The build platform is lowered from the top of the resin vat downwards by the layer thickness. 2. A UV light cures the resin layer by layer. The platform continues to move downwards and additional layers are built on top of the previous. 3. Some machines use a blade which moves between layers in order to provide a smooth resin base to build the next layer on. 4. After completion, the vat is drained of resin and the object removed
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Powder Bed Fusion :
The Powder Bed Fusion process includes the following commonly used printing techniques: Direct metal laser sintering (DMLS), Electron beam melting (EBM), Selective heat sintering (SHS), Selective laser melting (SLM) and Selective laser sintering (SLS).
Powder bed fusion (PBF) methods use either a laser or electron beam to melt and fuse material powder together. Electron beam melting (EBM), methods require a vacuum but can be used with metals and alloys in the creation of functional parts. All PBF processes involve the spreading of the powder material over previous layers. There are different mechanisms to enable this, including a roller or a blade. A hopper or a reservoir below of aside the bed provides fresh material supply. Direct metal laser sintering (DMLS) is the same as SLS, but with the use of metals and not plastics. The process sinters the powder, layer by layer. Selective Heat Sintering differs from other processes by way of using a heated thermal print head to fuse powder material together. As before, layers are added with a roller in between fusion of layers. A platform lowers the model accordingly.
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Powder Bed Fusion – Step by Step
1. A layer, typically 0.1mm thick of material is spread over the build platform. 2. A laser fuses the first layer or first cross section of the model. 3. A new layer of powder is spread across the previous layer using a roller. 4. Further layers or cross sections are fused and added. 5. The process repeats until the entire model is created. Loose, unfused powder is remains in position but is removed during post processing.
RAPID PROTOTYPEING:
Rapid prototyping technologies are able to produce physical model in a layer by layer manner directly from their CAD model without any tool dies and fixtures and also with little human intervention
Rapid prototyping is capable to fabricate parts quickly with complex shapes easily as compared to traditional manufacturing technology
RP helps in earlier dectection and reduction of design errors
ALL RP TECHNIQUES EMPLOY THE BASIC FIVE STEPS
1.CREATE A CAD MODEL OF THE DESIGN
2.CONVERT THE CAD MODEL TO STL FORMAT
3.SLICE THE STL FILE INTO THIS CROSS SECTIONAL LAYERS
