China3D printingNet, June 1st, researchers at Saarland University have developed a non-contact method that can combine3D printingMetal parts are converted into high-precision technical parts for professional applications.
This new technology uses electrochemical machining (ECM) to process additively manufactured metal parts into precision parts with complex geometries and dimensional tolerances of a few thousandths of a millimeter.
This method is designed to improve applications that must meet extremely stringent dimensional requirements in industries such as automotive and aerospaceMetal3D printingRealization of parts.
Professor Dirk Bähre of Saarland University explained: “Our post-processing additive manufacturing technology for metal parts provides a cost-effective method to produce high-precision functional surfaces for applications that require tight tolerances.
It allows a large number of parts to be post-processed efficiently and economically. “
Professor Dirk Bähre of the University of Sackland (left, here with Stefan Wilhelm of his research group). Picture from Saarland University.
Meet the size requirements of special applications
Complex technical systems, such as the engines that power cars, airplanes or rockets, are made of a large number of highly specialized metal parts. Generally, in order to ensure that these parts fit together perfectly and can withstand extreme mechanical stresses, each of them must be manufactured very accurately. Tolerances may be in the micrometer range, and Professor Bähre has developed a new post-processing method together with the research team at Saarland University.
From engine parts to anatomical models, metal3D printingIt has become an established method for manufacturing components with complex geometries.However, the researchers pointed out that often in many professional applications the parts are constructed layer by layer.3D printingCan not meet extremely strict size requirements.And in some cases, the geometry of the part may be too complicated to pass conventional metal3D printingTo produce.
therefore,BähreThe professor and his team set the refinement3D printingThe goal of metal parts, so that their size is correct to a few thousandths of a millimeter.The research team is experts in the field of precision machining and finishing. They have developed novel technologies that combine metal3D printingCombined with ECM, this is a method of removing metals through an electrochemical process. By electrochemically removing material, even the most complex geometries can be made from the hardest metals. Bähre explains: “Our non-destructive, non-contact manufacturing technology allows us to efficiently process parts with complex geometries, even parts made of high-strength materials.”
Professor Dirk Bähre (right) with researcher Shiqi Fang (left) and his research team’s technical assistant Stefan Wilhelm (middle). Picture from Saarland University.
Through electrochemical machining3D printingMetal post-processing
Professor Bähre’s craft is to combine3D printingThe metal parts are immersed in the flowing electrolyte, and then electrochemically processed into the required geometry, with tolerances of up to a few thousandths of a millimeter.According to China3D printingThe net understands that this can be done without any mechanical contact and does not impose any mechanical stress on the workpiece. For this, the engineer only needs a power source.High current flows between the tool (cathode) and the conductive workpiece (anode). In this case, the conductive workpiece is3D printingMetal parts. The metal part is then immersed in a conductive fluid (electrolyte); the electrochemical machining process will result in the removal of tiny metal particles from the surface of the workpiece.
The metal atoms on the surface of the workpiece enter the solution in the form of positively charged metal ions, so that the workpiece can obtain the required geometric shape very accurately. By adjusting the duration of the current pulse and the vibration of the tool, we can remove the surface material very uniformly, leaving a particularly smooth surface and achieving high dimensional accuracy.
Researchers rigorously checked the different metals used and the various process steps involved in order to have a thorough understanding of this method. “By carefully examining the process technology and material properties, we can improve and optimize electrochemical methods to obtain even smoother surfaces or more complex geometries with higher precision,” explains Professor Bähre. The team conducted many experiments, among which they first3D printingMetal parts, and then determine how to optimize subsequent electrochemical machining stages to produce the desired results. “We studied in detail how different materials and process parameters interact, and then determined how to configure the entire production process.”
China3D printingOnline reviews:Looking at global metals3D printingmarket, Many companies have taken various steps to advance the post-processing of metal parts produced by different companies through additive manufacturing. In 2019, A3DM Technologies, a Vermont-based metal additive manufacturing company, and GPA Innova, a Spanish advanced technology company, announced a partnership to develop optimized process parameters for GPA Innova’s “DryLyte” dry electropolishing process. Metal alloy used in powder-based additive manufacturing.
In addition, the British Manufacturing Technology Centre (MTC) in Coventry announced the results of its FlexiFinish project in July 2018. The project aims to solve the problem of poor surface quality of metal parts produced by additive manufacturing by providing its own automated additives. Post-processing solutions for manufacturing metal parts.
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