Additive Fertigung
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Motivated by the aim of developing an additive manufacturing (AM) technology easily integrated in the process chains of the ceramic industry, the LSD-print technology was conceived as a slurry-based variation of binder jetting (BJ).
BJ and other powder bed technologies (such as powder bed fusion) are amongst the most successful AM techniques, especially for metals and polymers, thanks to their high productivity and scalability. The possibility to use commercially available feedstocks (in the form of powders or granules) makes BJ also attractive for ceramic materials. The application of these techniques to most advanced ceramics has however been difficult so far, because of the limitations in depositing homogeneous layers with fine, typically poorly flowable powders.
In this context, the "layerwise slurry deposition" (LSD) was proposed at TU Clausthal (Germany) as a slurry-based deposition of ceramic layers by means of a doctor blade. Combined with layer-by-layer laser sintering of the material, the LSD process was originally demonstrated for the rapid prototyping of silicate ceramics. Due to the difficulties in controlling the microstructure and the defect formation in laser-sintered technical ceramics, the LSD process was later combined with inkjet printing in the LSD-print technology, which has been further developed at BAM (Germany) in the past decade.
The LSD-print technology combines the high speed of inkjet printing, typical of BJ, with the possibility of producing a variety of high-quality ceramics with properties comparable to those achieved by traditional processing. Due to the mechanical stability of the powder bed, the process can also be carried out with continuous layer deposition on a rotating platform, which further increases its productivity.
This presentation will delve into 10 years of research on the LSD-print of a wide variety of technical ceramics including alumina, silicon carbides and dental ceramics. The discussion highlights how a seemingly small process and feedstock modification (from powders to slurries) has great influence on the challenges and potential of this process, which are being addressed on its path to industrialization.
Powder bed technologies are amongst the most successful Additive Manufacturing (AM) techniques. The application of these techniques to most ceramics has been difficult so far, because of the challenges related to the deposition of homogeneous powder layers when using fine powders.
In this context, the "layerwise slurry deposition" (LSD) has been developed as a layer deposition method enabling the use of powder bed AM technologies also for advanced ceramic materials. The layerwise slurry deposition consists of the layer-by-layer deposition of a ceramic slurry by means of a doctor blade, in which the slurry is deposited and dried to achieve a highly packed powder. Not only very fine, submicron powders can be processed with low organics, but also the dense powder bed provides excellent support to the parts built. The LSD technology can be combined with binder jetting to develop the so-called “LSD-print” process. LSD-print combines the high-speed printing of binder jetting with the possibility of producing a variety of high-quality ceramics with properties comparable to traditional processing.
The latest development of this technology shows that it is possible to print ceramic parts in a continuous process by depositing a layer onto a rotating platform, growing a powder bed following a spiral motion. The unique mechanical stability of the layers in LSD-print allows to grow a powder bed several centimeters thick without any lateral support. The continuous layer deposition allows to achieve a productivity more than 10X higher compared to the linear deposition, approaching a build volume of 1 liter/hour.
Fully automated and decentralized fused filament fabrication of ceramics for remote applications
(2024)
Manufacturing of ceramic components in remote (i.e., geographically isolated) settings poses significant challenges where access to conventional manufacturing facilities is limited or non-existent. Fused Filament Fabrication (FFF) enables the rapid manufacturing of ceramic components with complex geometries. Parts formed by FFF require subsequent debinding and sintering to reach full density. Debinding and sintering are typically executed in separate steps with different equipment, necessitating extensive human handling which hinders process automation and may be challenging for the operator in isolated environments. This poster presents an innovative approach: the integration of all process steps into a single, fully automated system, streamlining the process and minimizing human involvement. Our system combines a dual extrusion filament printer with a porous and heat-resistant ceramic print bed. The porous print bed enables mechanical interlocking of the first printed layers, ensuring adhesion and structural integrity during FFF. Ceramic parts are printed onto thin sacrificial rafts, which are built using an interface material with the same binder as the ceramic filament. After the print is completed, the heat-resistant print bed with all parts is transferred seamlessly with a carrier system into a high-temperature furnace for debinding and sintering. During sintering the sacrificial raft is disintegrated, allowing for unconstrained sintering of the ceramic parts and easy removal of the finished parts. In conclusion, our integrated approach enables significant advancements in the fabrication of complex ceramic components in remote environments with increased efficiency and minimal human handling.
The Laser-Induced Slip Casting is an additive manufacturing technology specifically developed for ceramic materials using water-based ceramic slurries. The process takes place layer-by-layer in a similar fashion as top-down vat photopolymerization, selectively consolidating each layer by means of a laser energy source positioned on the top. Contrary to vat photopolymerization, in which the consolidation is achieved by selectively cross-linking a ceramic-filled resin, LIS uses water-based slurries with a low amount of organic additives (typically < 5 wt%) as feedstocks.
In LIS, a green body is formed by local evaporation of water which causes the suspension to collapse forming a cast, following a mechanism similar to slip casting. Only a small content of organic additives is needed to effectively disperse the ceramic particles and to increase the green strength.
The technology is very versatile and can be applied to all ceramic systems that can be dispersed in water. One of the main advantages is that even dark materials such as silicon carbide can be processed without issues related to light scattering and absorption.
The presentation will discuss strengths and limitations of LIS compared to other AM technologies and will highlight the latest results for alumina and for silicon carbide ceramics.
The presentation will start with an overview of ceramic additive manufacturing (AM) technologies and will discuss the potential of AM in the field of bioceramics.
The presentation will then focus on two possible use cases of binder jetting technologies.
In the first example, standard powder-based binder jetting is used to manufacture a porous implant design for large scale bone defects. The related challenges in the process chain will be discussed, from powder synthesis to sintering and characterization of the printed part.
In the second example, the LSD-print slurry-based binder jetting technology is presented as a possibility to adapt powder-bed AM to produce dense ceramic parts. The use case will focus on an application in the field of dental ceramics, specifically for the manufacturing of patient individualized single tooth restorations (veneers, crowns) with a high throughput process chain.
Additive manufacturing of metals – and in particular building with laser-based powder bed fusion – is highly flexible and allows high-resolution features and feedstock savings. Meanwhile, though space stations in low Earth orbit are established, a set of visits to the Moon have been performed, and humankind can send out rovers to explore Venus and Mars, none of these milestone missions is equipped with technology to manufacture functional metallic parts or tools in space. In order to advance space exploration to long-term missions beyond low Earth orbit, it will be crucial to develop and employ technology for in-space manufacturing (ISM) and in-situ resource utilisation (ISRU). To use the advantages of laser-based powder bed fusion in these endeavours, the challenge of powder handling in microgravity must be met. Here we present a device capable of building parts using metallic powders in microgravity. This was proven on several sounding rocket flights, on which occasions Zr-based metallic glass parts produced by additive manufacturing in space were built. The findings of this work demonstrate that building parts using powder feedstock, which is more compact to transport into space than wire, is possible in microgravity environments. This thus significantly advances ISRU and ISM and paves the way for future tests in prolonged microgravity settings.
Objectives
The aim of the study was to investigate the impact of organic additives (binder, plasticizer, and the cross-linking ink) in the formulation of water-based feedstocks on the properties of a dental feldspathic glass-ceramic material developed for the slurry-based additive manufacturing technology “LSD-print.”
Material and methods
Three water-based feldspathic feedstocks were produced to study the effects of polyvinyl alcohol (AC1) and poly (sodium 4-styrenesulfonate) (AC2) as binder systems. A feedstock without organic additives was tested as the control group (CG). Disc-shaped (n = 15) and bar (n = 7) specimens were slip-cast and characterized in the green and fired states. In the green state, density and flexural strength were measured. In the fired state, density, shrinkage, flexural strength (FS), Weibull modulus, fracture toughness (KIC), Martens parameters, and microstructure were analyzed. Disc-shaped and bar specimens were also cut from commercially available CAD/CAM blocks and used as a target reference (TR) for the fired state.
Results
In the green state, CG showed the highest bulk density but the lowest FS, while the highest FS in the green state was achieved with the addition of a cross-linking ink. After firing, no significant differences in density and a similar microstructure were observed for all slip-cast groups, indicating that almost complete densification could be achieved. The CAD/CAM specimens showed the highest mean FS, Weibull modulus, and KIC, with significant differences between some of the slip-cast groups.
Significance
These results suggest that the investigated feedstocks are promising candidates for the slurry-based additive manufacturing of restorations meeting the class 1a requirements according to DIN EN ISO 6871:2019–01.
Manipulating ceramic powder compacts and ceramic suspensions (slurries) within their volume with light requires a minimum transparency of the materials. Compared to polymers and metals, ceramic materials are unique as they offer a wide electronic band gap and thus a wide optical window of transparency. The optical window typically ranges from below 0.3 µm up to 5µm wavelength. Hence, to penetrate with laser light into the volume of a ceramic powder compound its light scattering properties need to be investigated and tailored. In the present study we introduce the physical background and material development strategies to apply two-photon-polymerization (2PP) for the additive manufacture of filigree structures within the volume of ceramic slurries.
Manipulating ceramic powder compacts and ceramic suspensions (slurries) within their volume with light requires a minimum transparency of the materials. Compared to polymers and metals, ceramic materials are unique as they offer a wide electronic band gap and thus a wide optical window of transparency. The optical window typically ranges from below 0.3 µm up to 5µm wavelength. Hence, to penetrate with laser light into the volume of a ceramic powder compound its light scattering properties need to be investigated and tailored. In the present study we introduce the physical background and material development strategies to apply two-photon-polymerization (2PP) for the additive manufacture of filigree structures within the volume of ceramic slurries.
Manipulating ceramic powder compacts and ceramic suspensions (slurries) within their volume with light requires a minimum transparency of the materials. Compared to polymers and metals, ceramic materials are unique as they offer a wide electronic band gap and thus a wide optical window of transparency. The optical window typically ranges from below 0.3 µm up to 5µm wavelength. Hence, to penetrate with light into the volume of a ceramic powder compound, its light scattering properties need to be investigated and tailored. In the present study we introduce the physical background and material development strategies to apply two-photon-polymerization (2PP), and other volumetric methods for the additive manufacture of filigree structures within the volume of ceramic slurries.
In order to be able to manipulate ceramic powder compacts and ceramic suspensions (slurries) within their volume with light, a minimum transparency of the materials is required. Compared to polymers and metals, ceramic materials are characterized by the fact that they have a wide electronic band gap and therefore a wide optical window of transparency. The optical window generally ranges from less than 0.3 µm to 5 µm wavelength. In order to focus light into the volume of a ceramic powder compact, its light scattering properties must therefore be tailored. In this study, we present the physical background and material development strategies for the application of two-photon polymerization (2PP) and selective volumetric sintering for the additive manufacturing of structures in the volume of ceramic slips and green compacts.
The Binder Jetting BJ process is one of the most versatile additive manufacturing technologies in use. In this process a binder is locally jetted into a powder bed for the consolidation of a 3D structure, layer by layer. Basically, all materials which can be provided as a flowable powder and, thus, spreadable to a thin layer, can be processed. Metals, ceramics and polymers are processable, but also materials from nature, such as sand, wood sawdust and insect frass. Moreover, the BJ technology is adapted to large building volumes of some cubic meters easily. Besides these striking advantages, the manufacture of ceramic parts by BJ is still challenging, as the packing density of the powder bed is generally too low and the particle size of a flowable powder too large for a successful densification of printed parts in a subsequent sintering step to an advanced ceramic product. After an introduction of binder jetting in general and highlighting some examples, strategies for obtaining dense ceramic parts by BJ will be introduced.
Regarding feedstocks for the additive manufacturing (AM) of ceramics, two features are most critical in classical powder based AM processes: a high particle packing density (typically >50% TD) must be achieved with very fine particles (typically submicron) in order to ensure sufficient sintering activity. Three innovative approaches will be introduced to overcome this problem:
1. Layer wise slurry deposition: The use of water based ceramic slurries as feedstock for the additive manufacture of ceramics has many advantages which are not fully exploit yet. In the layerwise slurry deposition (LSD) process a slurry with no or low organic content is repetitively spread as thin layers on each other by means of a doctor blade. During the deposition, the ceramic particles settle on the previously deposited and dried material to form thin layers with a high packing density (55-60%). The LSD therefore shares aspects both of tape casting and slip casting. The LSD differentiates from the classical powder-based AM layer deposition, which typically achieves with a flowable coarse grained powder a low packing density (35-50%) only, consequently hindering the ability of sintering ceramic parts to full density. The LSD is coupled with the principles of selective laser sintering (SLS) or binder jetting, to generate novel processes which take advantage of the possibility of achieving a highly dense powder-bed.
2. Laser induced slip casting: Contrary to the LSD process, which requires drying of each individual layer, the direct interaction of ceramic slurries with intense laser radiation, for the laser induced slip casting (LIS), is a promising approach for the additive manufacture of voluminous parts.
3. Gas flow assisted powder deposition: By the application of a vacuum pump a gas flow is realized throughout the powder bed. This gas flow stabilizes the powder bed and results into an enhanced flowability and packing density of the powder during layer deposition.
The presentation will provide a detailed discussion of potentialities and issues connected to the mentioned technologies and will describe the most recent developments in their application to technical ceramics.
Future lunar exploration will be based on in-situ resource utilization (ISRU) techniques. The most abundant raw material on the Moon is lunar regolith, which, however, is very scarce on Earth, making the study of simulants a necessity. The objective of this study is to characterize and investigate the sintering behavior of EAC-1A lunar regolith simulant. The characterization of the simulant included the determination of the phase assemblage, characteristic temperatures determination and water content analysis. The results are discussed in the context of sintering experiments of EAC-1A simulant, which showed that the material can be sintered to a relative density close to 90%, but only within a very narrow range of temperatures (20–30 °C). Sintering experiments were performed for sieved and unsieved, as well as for dried and non-dried specimens of EAC-1A. In addition, an analysis of the densification and mechanical properties of the sintered specimens was done. The sintering experiments at different temperatures showed that the finest fraction of sieved simulant can reach a higher maximum sintering temperature, and consequently a higher densification and biaxial strength. The non-dried powder exhibited higher densification and biaxial strength after sintering compared to the dried specimen. This difference was explained with a higher green density of the non-dried powder during pressing, rather than due to an actual influence on the sintering mechanism. Nevertheless, drying the powder prior to sintering is important to avoid the overestimation of the strength of specimens to be fabricated on the Moon.
Laser melting manufacturing of large elements of lunar regolith simulant for paving on the Moon
(2023)
The next steps for the expansion of the human presence in the solar system will be taken on the Moon. However, due to the low lunar gravity, the suspended dust generated when lunar rovers move across the lunar soil is a significant risk for lunar missions as it can affect the systems of the exploration vehicles. One solution to mitigate this problem is the construction of roads and landing pads on the Moon. In addition, to increase the sustainability of future lunar missions, in-situ resource utilization (ISRU) techniques must be developed. In this paper, the use of concentrated light for paving on the Moon by melting the lunar regolith is investigated. As a substitute of the concentrated sunlight, a high-power CO2 laser is used in the experiments. With this set-up, a maximum laser spot diameter of 100 mm can be achieved, which translates in high thicknesses of the consolidated layers. Furthermore, the lunar regolith simulant EAC-1A is used as a substitute of the actual lunar soil. At the end of the study, large samples (approximately 250 × 250 mm) with interlocking capabilities were fabricated by melting the lunar simulant with the laser directly on the powder bed. Large areas of lunar soil can be covered with these samples and serve as roads and landing pads, decreasing the propagation of lunar dust. These manufactured samples were analysed regarding their ineralogical composition, internal structure and mechanical properties.
Additive Manufacturing for dental restorations by layerwise slurry deposition (LSD-print) technology
(2023)
The growing market of custom-made dental restorations offers a major potential for an application of ceramic additive manufacturing (AM).
The possibility to individualize patient specific design and to establish new efficient workflows, from model generation to manufacturing, can be fully exploited by AM technologies. However, for mass customization to be truly envisioned, ceramic AM needs to achieve a level of maturity, aesthetic quality, and productivity comparable to established manufacturing processes.
In this presentation, the potential of the “layerwise slurry deposition” LSD-print technology for dental applications will be explored. It has been shown in the past years that the LSD-print can be applied to advanced ceramic materials such as alumina and silicon-infiltrated silicon carbide. For these materials, the LSD-print technology combines the high-speed printing of binder jetting with the possibility of producing a variety of high-quality ceramics.
The current development deals with the challenges of applying this technology to a feldspar dental material, comparing the quality of AM restorations with the equivalent material for an established CAD/CAM workflow.
Preliminary results not only indicate that the AM material produced by LSD-print can be competitive in terms of mechanical properties, but also that aesthetically satisfactory restorations can be manufactured for veneers, inlays and onlays as well as single unit fixed dental prostheses (FDPs).
The presentation focuses on the material and technological challenges alongside the process chain, from the printing process, to debinding, firing and finishing the restorations.
The presentation gives an overview of two slurry-based additive manufacturing (AM) technologies specifically developed for advanced ceramic materials.
The “Layerwise Slurry Deposition” (LSD-print) is a modification of Binder Jetting making use of a ceramic slurry instead of a dry powder as a feedstock. In this process, a slurry is deposited layer-by-layer by means of a doctor blade and dried to achieve a highly packed powder layer, which is then printed by jetting a binder. The LSD-print technology combines the high-speed printing of binder jetting with the possibility of producing a variety of high-quality ceramics with properties comparable to those achieved by traditional processing.
The Laser Induced Slip casting (LIS) technology follows a novel working principle by locally drying and selectively consolidating layer-by-layer a ceramic green body in a vat of slurry, using a laser as energy source. LIS combines elements of Vat Photopolymerization with the use of water-based feedstocks containing a minimal amount of organic additives. The resulting technology can be directly integrated into a traditional ceramic process chain by manufacturing green bodies that are sintered without the need of a dedicated debinding.
Both technologies offer high flexibility in the ceramic feedstock used, especially concerning material and particle size. Advantages and disadvantages are briefly described to outline the specific features of LSD-print and LIS depending on the targeted application.
Recently, efforts towards the development of patient-specific 3D printed scaffolds for bone tissue engineering from bioactive ceramics have continuously intensified. For reconstruction of segmental defects after subtotal mandibulectomy a suitable tissue engineered bioceramic bone graft needs to be endowed with homogenously distributed osteoblasts in order to mimic the advantageous features of vascularized autologous fibula grafts, which represent the standard of care, contain osteogenic cells and are transplanted with the respective blood vessel. Consequently, inducing vascularization early on is pivotal for bone tissue engineering. The current study explored an advanced bone tissue engineering approach combining an advanced 3D printing technique for bioactive resorbable ceramic scaffolds with a perfusion cell culture technique for pre-colonization with mesenchymal stem cells, and with an intrinsic angiogenesis technique for regenerating critical size, segmental discontinuity defects in vivo applying a rat model. To this end, the effect of differing Si-CAOP (silica containing calcium alkali orthophosphate) scaffold microarchitecture arising from 3D powder bed printing (RP) or the Schwarzwalder Somers (SSM) replica fabrication technique on vascularization and bone regeneration was analyzed in vivo. In 80 rats 6-mm segmental discontinuity defects were created in the left femur.
LTCCs (Low-temperature co-fired ceramics) consist of three-dimensionally distributed, hermetically bonded ceramic and metallic components with structure sizes within [10; 100] µm. A non-destructive imaging technique is needed that provides 3D, sharp, high-contrast resolution of these structures, as well as porosity and defect analysis, which is made difficult by the very different X-ray absorption coefficients of the individual components of the microstructure. A HDR method is being developed that allows a combination of different tomograms, each with X-ray energies adapted to individual materials.
3D printing or additive manufacturing in space is of great value for long-term human spaceflight missions and space stations, conveniently offering access to a ‘virtual warehouse’ of tools and spare parts on the push of a button. The process only needs one type of feedstock such as powder or filament and only as much material as the final part requires, giving it a huge weight benefit over traditional subtractive methods.
While 3D printers are already operational on the ISS since 2014, the utilized processes are only capable of manufacturing relatively low strength parts from polymers not suitable for many tools or critical components. To gain access to high quality metal prints, a modified Laser Powder Bed Fusion (LPBF) process was developed to stabilize the critical powder bed in microgravity through a gas flow [2]. This setup was able to generate a (miniature) steel wrench during parabolic flights, but a reliable layer deposition has raised challenges due to the combination of gas flow parameters with microgravity conditions. Furthermore, the quality and density of the powder bed, which is critical for the process, cannot be examined afterward on the ground. This is due to hyper gravity phases during the flight that are influencing the properties of the powder bed.
In this paper, the challenges of the layer deposition are revised, and the subsequent evolution of the recoating system explained. Later, the challenges of an in-situ quality control, evaluation, and quantification of the properties of the powder bed are examined. As a solution, a high-resolution line-scanner is proposed and its implementation int the compact LPBF system demonstrated. Its ability to measure common defects such as ridges in the deposited layer is shown in experiments at normal gravity. As an illustration, Figure 1 shows an extreme case of the formation of ridges.