A Dual-Laser Additive Manufacturing System for Novel Materials (Green3D)

该项目旨在为英国的研究机构和行业提供最先进的双激光(绿色/红外)激光粉末融合(L-PBF)相加制造(AM)系统。该显影系统可用于加工新型金属材料，无论使用哪种激光光源。绿色激光将使AM能够在红外(IR)范围内对低激光吸收材料，特别是铜及其合金、贵金属以及一些激光吸收能力差的结构材料进行AM。由于激光光源的切换是完全自动化的，该系统可以根据缺陷敏感材料的几何形状来定制热输入，或者构建功能梯度材料。与英国大学中的大多数基于IR的系统不同，小型加工室将使在完全开放的系统中使用有限数量的粉末开发出成本过高的材料，该系统参数不锁定，材料转换迅速。这两种激光在同一系统中的存在将使人们能够探索激光光源在固结、产量和性能方面的用途，特别是未知激光吸收系数的新材料。随着AM在空间、能源、医疗保健和通信设备领域的应用范围的扩大，人们对AM的兴趣正在迅速增长。由于该系统能够处理有限数量的粉末以及制造中等尺寸的部件，因此该系统将支持英国学术界和工业界的项目，使其成为材料和产品开发的理想选择。它还将支持现场工艺监测、材料开发和集成计算材料工程(ICME)的研究，以模拟激光与粉末的相互作用和由此产生的材料性能。

This project aims to empower the UK's research institutions and industry with a state-of-the-art dual laser (green/infrared) laser powder fusion (L-PBF) additive manufacturing (AM) system. This development system can be used to process novel metallic materials, using either laser sources. The green laser will enable AM of low laser absorptivity materials, especially Cu and its alloys, precious metals, as well as some structural materials of poor laser absorptivity in the infrared (IR) range. As switching the laser-source is fully automated, the system can tailor the heat input with the geometry in defect-susceptible materials or build functionally graded materials. The small processing chamber will enable the development of excessively costly materials using limited quantities of powders in a fully open system with unlocked parameters and with a quick material changeover, unlike the majority of the IR-based systems in the UK universities. The presence of both lasers on the same system will permit exploring the utility of the laser source on consolidation, throughput and performance, especially novel materials of unknown laser absorptivity. The interest in AM of novel materials is growing rapidly with the expansion in its applications in the space, energy, healthcare, and communication devices sectors.The system will support projects for both the UK academia and industry, due to its ability to process limited quantities of powders, as well as build medium sized components, making it ideal for both material and product development. It will also support research on in-situ process monitoring, materials development and Integrated Computational Materials Engineering (ICME) to simulate the laser-powder interaction and the resulting material properties.