I-Corps: In-situ Non-Destructive Evaluation for Higher Yields at Metal Additive Manufacturing Installations

I-Corps：对金属增材制造装置进行更高产量的原位无损评估

• 批准号: 1823940
• 负责人: Leslie Butler
• 金额: $ 5万
• 依托单位: Louisiana State University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2018
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2018-04-01 至 2021-09-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1823940&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Corps; situ; Non; Destructive; Evaluation

The broader impact/commercial potential of this i-Corps project is safer and more reliable 3D printed metal structures, also commercially known as additive manufactured parts. The project will explore the needs of the 3D printing industry as the technology is applied to ever more demanding areas such as aerospace and automotive. In aerospace, each component must be produced by a verified and validated procedure, and in-situ inspection can meet that need. In the automotive industry, representative components must be evaluated to verify production procedures and equipment operation; again, in-situ inspection can meet this need. In addition to aerospace and automotive, 3D printed metal structures are expected to have wide commercial applications, ranging from health to defense. In these applications, safety and reliability are paramount. For example, a 3D printed replacement for a broken bone must be highly resistant to breakage itself. However, the mass limitations for a bone replacement require efficiency in design and a trust in fabrication. This I-Corps project is a non-destructive evaluation (NDE) method that is used to observe the metal structure while it is being printed or upon completion of the manufacturing process. Historically, metal parts must be subjected to destructive inspection methods to meet high reliability requirements after manufacturing. This alternative NDE is based on a novel X-ray imaging method, grating-based interferometry, first introduced about ten years ago. In this method, micro-fabricated X-ray optics are used to enhance the X-ray image, especially for the detection of sub-micron features. The traditional X-ray image is improved with an overlay image that reveals the presence of sub-micron features. Recently, sub-micron features in 3D printed metal components have been correlated with preliminary crack formation under fatigue stress. Therefore, an X-ray grating-based interferometry image of a freshly printed structure (either in-progress or completed) can reveal the presence of failure points. By demonstrating the viability of this unique NDE methodology to potential users of 3D printed parts, it is anticipated that new market segments can gain sufficient confidence in part reliability to incorporate these 3D printed parts into critical components.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

这个i-Corps项目更广泛的影响/商业潜力是更安全，更可靠的3D打印金属结构，商业上也称为增材制造零件。 该项目将探索3D打印行业的需求，因为该技术应用于航空航天和汽车等要求越来越高的领域。 在航空航天领域，每个部件都必须通过经过验证和确认的程序生产，现场检查可以满足这一需求。 在汽车工业中，必须对代表性部件进行评估，以验证生产程序和设备运行;同样，现场检测可以满足这一需求。 除了航空航天和汽车，3D打印金属结构预计将具有广泛的商业应用，从健康到国防。 在这些应用中，安全性和可靠性至关重要。 例如，用于骨折的3D打印替代品本身必须具有高度的抗断裂性。 然而，骨置换的质量限制要求设计效率和制造可靠性。 I-Corps项目是一种无损评估（NDE）方法，用于在打印或完成制造过程时观察金属结构。 从历史上看，金属零件必须经过破坏性检查方法，以满足制造后的高可靠性要求。 这种替代的无损检测是基于一种新的X射线成像方法，光栅干涉法，首次介绍了大约十年前。 在这种方法中，微制造的X射线光学器件用于增强X射线图像，特别是用于检测亚微米特征。 传统的X射线图像是改进的叠加图像，揭示了亚微米功能的存在。 最近，3D打印金属部件中的亚微米特征与疲劳应力下的初步裂纹形成有关。 因此，新打印的结构（进行中或完成）的基于X射线光栅的干涉测量图像可以揭示故障点的存在。 通过向3D打印零件的潜在用户展示这种独特的无损检测方法的可行性，预计新的细分市场可以对零件可靠性获得足够的信心，将这些3D打印零件纳入关键组件。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。