3D printing is a rapidly developing technology currently recognized as the future of short-series production.
However, it wasn't always so optimistic. When 3D printing appeared several good decades ago, it was treated as a rather impressive but slow curiosity that would not find real application. It was sometimes used for design and prototyping, but was never meant to become one of the basic production methods.
However, those who did not predict well for 3D printers could not be more wrong. Over the past 10 years, 3D printing technology - and in metal - has developed to the extent that it has attracted many leading manufacturers and is finding applications in increasingly new areas of industry.
3D Metal Printers
In the last few years, there has been a sharp increase in both supply and demand for 3D metal printers. Manufacturers are constantly introducing new solutions for additive manufacturing for metals, which are faster, easier to use and more efficient, as well as allowing the use of a greater number of different metals.
For this reason, an increasing number of companies are using 3D metal printing technologies to produce metal parts and prototypes, also benefiting from the increased design freedom resulting from the very idea of additive printing. Metal 3D printers are currently used in various industries, such as aerospace, aviation, automotive, medical devices, tooling, and beyond.
3D Printing
3D printing, also known as additive technology, is the process of creating a three-dimensional object from scratch, layer by layer. It usually starts with a digital, three-dimensional model of the part, which is digitally "sliced" by software into many very thin layers, where the thickness of the layers depends on the shape of the product and the type of material used.
Next, raw material, usually in the form of powder or granules, is loaded into the printer. The most popular material is of course plastic, but metals such as aluminum, titanium, tool and stainless steel, nickel, copper, bronze, cobalt and precious metals (gold, silver, platinum) are also increasingly used. The raw material is heated to the melting temperature and applied by the machine to the working surface, layer by layer, until the entire product is printed.
3D Metal Printing
When we look at the growing number of industrial and commercial applications of additive technology, metal 3D printing is always at the forefront. It is one of the fastest growing production technologies. It can now be used in conjunction with other techniques for prototyping and short-series production. In some cases, the quality of 3D-printed metal objects and printing efficiency are already comparable to, or even higher than, traditional technologies.
3D metal printing is used in prototyping and short-series production in the space industry, aviation, automotive industry, engineering, and in the production of medical and laboratory systems.
How Does 3D Metal Printing Work?
3D metal printing is a broad term for a family of several technologies. Simply put, any manufacturing technology that enables the creation of metal objects layer by layer through melting, welding, or sintering can be called a 3D metal printing process. There are really many solutions that allow printing in metal, but it's worth - as always - getting to know the most commonly used ones.
Basic 3D Printing Technologies
Three main technologies are used in 3D metal printing:
- DMLS (Direct Metal Laser Sintering)
- SLM (Selective Laser Melting)
- EBM (Electron Beam Melting)
DMLS 3D Printing
Direct Metal Laser Sintering or DMLS is the most popular method of 3D metal printing. The laser is used to sinter metal powder, layer by layer, to create the printed part.
Materials used in this printing technique include a wide range of metal alloys, such as maraging steel, aluminum, Inconel 625 nickel-chromium alloys, cobalt-chromium alloys, and titanium.
The DMLS technique is used to create prototypes and machine parts. It can be used to produce elements with undercuts, recesses, and various angles of inclination. These include medical devices, instruments, prototypes, and tools.
SLM 3D Printing
Selective Laser Melting or SLM, as the name suggests, involves melting the material. 3D printing takes place in an inert gas environment. For this reason, the quality of SLM 3D printing is very close to the quality of parts manufactured by casting or forging methods.
Objects made using SLM 3D printing technology are very durable. For this reason, this technology can be used to produce mechanical parts, such as propellers and gears, as well as products used in the automotive, medical, and aviation industries.
EBM 3D Printing
The Electron Beam Melting or EBM technique is similar to SLM printing, but uses an electron beam instead of a laser. This technology is faster and more accurate than laser-assisted printing, and products printed with it are generally more durable than parts obtained in other metal printing processes.
The EBM method is used mainly for the production of objects made of titanium and cobalt and includes parts and components for aircraft, space shuttles, rockets, and engines.
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Advantages of 3D Metal Printing
A great advantage of 3D metal printing is design freedom. 3D printing gives manufacturers the ability to produce elements with extreme geometric complexity that either cannot be made or are very difficult to make using traditional machining techniques.
Minimal waste: In most cases, the only material needed to print a product is the one used in the finished product. Besides, there is virtually no excess material, and any residues can be reused or recycled. This of course means a lower cost of the production process.
One-step production: during the 3D printing process, the machine works automatically, without operator supervision. This means that one operator can simultaneously operate multiple printers, which allows for reducing labor costs. Dependence on other traditional production processes, such as cutting, milling, and welding, is also reduced because the entire production process takes place in one machine.
Additionally, metal 3D printers are much smaller than most advanced CNC machines, which means they take up less space in the production hall. They also allow for shortening the production process time.
In addition, 3D metal printing:
- Allows faster production of complex parts compared to traditional production methods.
- 3D metal printing is cheaper than traditional techniques
- Depending on the chosen technology, 3D metal printing allows for the precise production of objects with very complex geometry.
- Even in the case of very complex designs, parts of extremely high strength are obtained. This is one of the reasons why 3D-printed components are in high demand in the aviation, aerospace, and military industries.
- 3D metal printing does not generate material waste, unlike traditional production methods.
In short, 3D metal printing is an ideal technique for creating complex parts that are difficult to produce using traditional technologies or when such production would be inefficient.
The Future of 3D Printing
In the future, many "disadvantages" of 3D printing will be minimized or completely eliminated as the technology becomes more widespread. And as designers don't idle and innovations appear like mushrooms after rain, the cost of 3D printers themselves will also decrease.
New printers will also be able to use more types of materials and become faster. Therefore, projects that currently take days to complete will be finished within hours or even minutes.
In the coming years, 3D printing will continue to evolve and change the manufacturing landscape. It will form the basis for custom and short-series production. It will also be used in mass production in many industries, such as automotive, aviation, healthcare, and beyond.