Layered Extrusion of Metal Alloys (LEMA)

增材制造技术被视为传统制造工艺的可行替代方案，能够以低材料浪费创造几何效率高的结构。商业激光和电子束金属增材制造系统越来越多地用于高价值的航空航天和医疗行业，以直接制造金属最终用途部件。为了制造具有全密度的部件，这些工艺必须完全熔化原料材料，这随后在成形部件内产生大的热应力。除此之外，这些高功率激光/电子系统中使用的硬件固有地昂贵且能量效率低。这造成了技术挑战和经济障碍，随后限制了新的市场和行业接受这种极具前景和颠覆性的制造技术。该提案将开发一种新型的低热应力诱导，低成本金属增材制造工艺，工程金属合金分层挤压（LEMA）。一种特殊的金属原料将使用一种开发的系统进行挤出，该系统旨在创建分层的3D结构。与传统的基于激光/电子的增材制造系统相比，独特的原料化学和仔细的工艺控制的组合将允许有效的材料沉积，同时降低热梯度。

Additive Manufacturing technologies are viewed as viable alternatives to conventional manufacturing processes, capable of creating geometrically efficient structures with low material waste. Commercial laser and electron beam metallic Additive Manufacturing systems are increasingly being used in high value aerospace and medical industries to directly manufacture metallic end-use parts. To manufacture components with full densities, these processes must completely melt the feedstock material, this subsequently generates large thermal stresses within formed components. Further to this, the hardware used within these high power laser/electron systems are inherently expensive and energy inefficient. This creates technical challenges and economic barriers that subsequently restrict new markets and industries from embracing this highly promising and disruptive manufacturing technology.This proposal will develop a novel low thermal stress inducing, low cost metallic Additive Manufacturing process, Layered Extrusion of engineering Metal Alloys (LEMA). A specially created metallic feedstock will be extruded using a developed system designed to create layered 3D structures. A combination of unique feedstock chemistry and careful process control will allow efficient deposition of materials with a reduction in thermal gradients compared to conventional laser/electron based Additive Manufacturing systems.