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A special issue of Materials (ISSN 1996-1944). This special issue belongs to the section "Manufacturing Processes and Systems".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (10 March 2023) | Viewed by 26631

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Special Issue Editor

Dr. Nanya Li

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Guest Editor

Institute for Pulsed Power and Microwave Technology, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, 76344 Eggenstein-Leopoldshafen, Germany
Interests: 3D printing; microwave applications; fiber-reinforced composites; path planning and simulation; multirobot cooperation

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Three-dimensional printing, also known as additive manufacturing, offers an unprecedented opportunity to produce complex and customized products for industrial applications, especially in aerospace, vehicles, renewable energy, construction, biomedicine, and prototyping. Recent fruitful research achievements indicate that this emerging technology has the ability to transform the existing design and manufacturing processes. A wide range of three-dimensional (3D) structures and geometries can be fabricated using different kinds of materials, such as metals, polymers, ceramics, and fiber-reinforced composites. With the diverse combinations between structures and materials, many interesting properties have been explored. For instance, chopped/continuous fibers arranged in different orientations bring optimization and adjustability to the mechanical properties of printed structures.

The present Issue aims to promote the development of 3D printing continuously and offer a platform to the research community to address the most outstanding advances in this field. An understanding of the fundamental relationships of materials, printing parameters, and properties is pursued. Both theoretical and experimental contributions can be submitted. Among others, the following topics are encouraged in this Special Issue:

3D printing process investigation;
3D printing of fiber-reinforced composites;
Investigation of mechanical properties;
Thermal treatments, dimensional accuracy, and deformation evaluation;
Innovative process strategies;
Process monitoring and control;
Novel 3D printing methods and systems;
Numerical simulation.

Dr. Nanya Li
Guest Editor

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Keywords

3D printing
material properties
fiber-reinforced composites
process strategies
design and optimization
numerical simulation
manufacturing processes

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Published Papers (11 papers)

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Research

22 pages, 10713 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Influence of Carbonated Bottom Slag Granules in 3D Concrete Printing

by Karolina Butkute, Vitoldas Vaitkevicius, Maris Sinka, Algirdas Augonis and Aleksandrs Korjakins

Materials 2023, 16(11), 4045; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma16114045 - 29 May 2023

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1673

Abstract

This study investigates the possibility of utilising bottom slag (BS) waste from landfills, and a carbonation process advantageous for the use of artificial aggregates (AAs) in printed three-dimensional (3D) concrete composites. In general, the main idea of granulated aggregates is to reduce the amount of CO₂ emissions of printed 3D concrete objects (wall). AAs are made from construction materials, both granulated and carbonated. Granules are made from a combination of binder (ordinary Portland cement (OPC), hydrated lime, burnt shale ash (BSA)) and waste material (BS). BS is a waste material left over after the municipal waste burning process in cogeneration power plants. Whole printed 3D concrete composite manufacturing consists of: granulating artificial aggregate, aggregate hardening and sieving (adaptive granulometer), carbonation of AA, mixing 3D concrete, and 3D printing. The granulating and printing processes were analysed for hardening processes, strength results, workability parameters, and physical and mechanical properties. Printings with no granules (reference 3D printed concrete) were compared to 3D printed concretes with 25% and 50% of their natural aggregate replaced with carbonated AA. The results showed that, theoretically, the carbonation process could help to react approximately 126 kg/m³ CO₂ from 1 m³ of granules. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue 3D Printing: Materials, Properties, and Applications)

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16 pages, 10485 KiB

Open AccessArticle

From Electronic Waste to 3D-Printed Product, How Multiple Recycling Affects High-Impact Polystyrene (HIPS) Filament Performances

by Edbert Wing Hanitio, Novan Rifky Lutfhyansyah, Balqis Mentari Efendi, Yati Mardiyati and Steven Steven

Materials 2023, 16(9), 3412; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma16093412 - 27 Apr 2023

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2406

Abstract

The rapid growth of the electronics industry is producing excessive electronic waste. One of the common types of materials in electronic waste is high-impact polystyrene (HIPS). In this study, HIPS from electronic waste was recycled through an extrusion process and used as a 3D print filament. The effects of recycling on printability, physical properties, and mechanical properties in horizontal and vertical directions were examined. It was found that until the fourth-cycle, mechanical properties such as horizontal tensile strength, horizontal flexural strength, vertical flexural strength, and vertical impact strength were comparable with virgin commercial filament. In addition, the vertical flexural modulus in the fourth cycle increased by 77.28%. However, the density of recycled HIPs’ first to the fourth cycle slightly decreased by 10.6%, and the melt flow rate increased by 20.3%. It was also observed that until the third cycle, the effect of the reprocessing steps was insignificant on the defect of the 3D-printed product. In general, the experiments show various results, mainly in mechanical properties. Nevertheless, recycled HIPS filaments are comparable to or better than commercial ones in some cases. As a result, recycled HIPS filaments hold the potential to be considered as an alternative to other types of 3D print filaments. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue 3D Printing: Materials, Properties, and Applications)

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15 pages, 2334 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Investigation of Different Pre-Treatment Techniques and 3D Printed Turbulence Promoter to Mitigate Membrane Fouling in Dairy Wastewater Module

by Szabolcs Kertész, Aws N. Al-Tayawi, Gréta Gergely, Bence Ott, Nikolett Sz. Gulyás, Zoltán Jákói, Sándor Beszédes, Cecilia Hodúr, Tamás Szabó and Zsuzsanna László

Materials 2023, 16(8), 3117; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma16083117 - 15 Apr 2023

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1908

Abstract

This study investigates the enhancement of dairy wastewater treatment using chemical and physical pre-treatments coupled with membrane separation techniques to reduce membrane fouling. Two mathematical models, namely the Hermia and resistance-in-series module, were utilized to comprehend the mechanisms of ultrafiltration (UF) membrane fouling. The predominant fouling mechanism was identified by fitting experimental data into four models. The study calculated and compared permeate flux, membrane rejection, and membrane reversible and irreversible resistance values. The gas formation was also evaluated as a post-treatment. The results showed that the pre-treatments improved UF efficiency for flux, retention, and resistance values compared to the control. Chemical pre-treatment was identified as the most effective approach to improve filtration efficiency. Physical treatments after microfiltration (MF) and UF showed better fluxes, retention, and resistance results than ultrasonic pre-treatment followed by UF. The efficacy of a three-dimensionally printed (3DP) turbulence promoter was also examined to mitigate membrane fouling. The integration of the 3DP turbulence promoter enhanced hydrodynamic conditions and increased the shear rate on the membrane surface, shortening filtration time and increasing permeate flux values. This study provides valuable insights into optimizing dairy wastewater treatment and membrane separation techniques, which can have significant implications for sustainable water resource management. The present outcomes clearly recommend the application of hybrid pre-, main- and post-treatments coupled with module-integrated turbulence promoters in dairy wastewater ultrafiltration membrane modules to increase membrane separation efficiencies. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue 3D Printing: Materials, Properties, and Applications)

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19 pages, 8645 KiB

Open AccessArticle

A Novel Approach for Powder Bed Fusion of Ceramics Using Two Laser Systems

by Duran Kaya, Mohamed Abdelmoula, Gökhan Küçüktürk, David Grossin and Artemis Stamboulis

Materials 2023, 16(6), 2507; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma16062507 - 21 Mar 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2014

Abstract

The one-step AM process is considered the goal many researchers seek in the field of Additive Manufacturing (AM) of high-technology ceramics. Among the several AM techniques, only Powder Bed Fusion (PBF) can directly print high-technology ceramics using one step. However, the PBF technique faces numerous challenges to efficiently be employed in the PBF of ceramics. These challenges include the formation of cracks, generated thermal stress, effective laser–powder interaction, and low acquired relative density. This study developed a new preheating mechanism for ceramic materials using two laser systems to surpass beyond these challenges and successfully print ceramics with a single-step AM method. One laser is used to preheat the powder particles before the second laser is utilised to complete the melting/sintering process. Both lasers travel along the same scanning path. There is a slight delay (0.0001 s) between the preheating laser and the melting/sintering laser to guarantee that the melting/sintering laser scans a properly preheated powder. To further facilitate testing of the preheating system, a numerical model has been developed to simulate the preheating and melting process and to acquire proper process parameters. The developed numerical model was shown to determine the correct process parameters without needing costly and time-consuming experiments. Alumina samples (10 × 10 × 6 mm³) were successfully printed using alumina powder as feedstock. The surface of the samples was nearly defect-free. The samples’ relative densities exceeded 80%, the highest reported relative density for alumina produced by a single-step AM method. This discovery can significantly accelerate the transition to a one-step AM process of ceramics. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue 3D Printing: Materials, Properties, and Applications)

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19 pages, 22385 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Load-Oriented Nonplanar Additive Manufacturing Method for Optimized Continuous Carbon Fiber Parts

by Johann Kipping and Thorsten Schüppstuhl

Materials 2023, 16(3), 998; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma16030998 - 21 Jan 2023

Cited by 9 | Viewed by 3244

Abstract

The process of the additive manufacturing (AM) of carbon-fiber-reinforced polymer (CFRP) parts based on the process of fused deposition modeling (FDM) has seen considerable research in recent years, which amplifies the importance of adapted slicing and pathplanning methods. In particular, load-oriented techniques are of high interest when employing carbon fiber materials, as classical methods, such as tape-laying and laminating, struggle with highly curved and complex geometries and require the costly production of molds. While there have been some promising propositions in this field, most have restricted themselves to a planar slicing approach, which severely limits the ability to place the fibers along stress paths. In this paper, a nonplanar slicing approach is presented that utilizes principal stress directions to construct optimized nonplanar constituting layers on which pathplanning can be carried out. These layers are oriented such that the effect of the weak interlayer adhesion is minimized. Support material is adaptively generated to enable the use of arbitrary part geometry. Furthermore, a continuous pathplanning method and post-processor are applied to yield manufacturing instructions. The approach is verified for its viability of application through experimental investigation on a multi-axis robotic 3D printer. This constitutes an important step in allowing the fabrication of CFRP parts to further utilize the possibilities of additive manufacturing. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue 3D Printing: Materials, Properties, and Applications)

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24 pages, 13135 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Effect of Scanning Strategy on Thermal Stresses and Strains during Electron Beam Melting of Inconel 625: Experiment and Simulation

by Xiaoyu Zhao, Yuan Wei, Rami Mansour, Sasan Dadbakhsh and Amir Rashid

Materials 2023, 16(1), 443; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma16010443 - 3 Jan 2023

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1982

Abstract

This paper develops a hybrid experimental/simulation method for the first time to assess the thermal stresses generated during electron beam melting (EBM) at high temperatures. The bending and rupture of trusses supporting Inconel 625 alloy panels at ~1050 °C are experimentally measured for various scanning strategies. The generated thermal stresses and strains are thereafter simulated using the Finite-Element Method (FEM). It is shown that the thermal stresses on the trusses may reach the material UTS without causing failure. Failure is only reached after the part experiences a certain magnitude of plastic strain (~0.33 ± 0.01 here). As the most influential factor, the plastic strain increases with the scanning length. In addition, it is shown that continuous scanning is necessary since the interrupted chessboard strategy induces cracking at the overlapping regions. Therefore, the associated thermal deformation is to be minimized using a proper layer rotation according to the part length. Although this is similar to the literature reported for selective laser melting (SLM), the effect of scanning pattern is found to differ, as no significant difference in thermal stresses/strains is observed between bidirectional and unidirectional patterns from EBM. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue 3D Printing: Materials, Properties, and Applications)

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14 pages, 4225 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Reducing Surface Roughness of 3D Printed Short-Carbon Fiber Reinforced Composites

by Raluca Maier, Sebastian-Gabriel Bucaciuc and Andrei Cristian Mandoc

Materials 2022, 15(20), 7398; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma15207398 - 21 Oct 2022

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 1782

Abstract

A 100 W fibre laser source was used to minimize the surface roughness of 3D-printed Onyx parts. Furthermore, this study aimed to determine the mechanism of surface finishing, the influence of the laser process parameters (laser power, pulse frequency, and laser scanning path) on the surface morphology, and the influence of the scanning path on the dimensional accuracy of the investigated Onyx 3D-printed specimens. A significant reduction in surface roughness of 91.15% was achieved on the S3 Onyx 3D-printed specimen following laser surface polishing treatment using a 50 W laser power and a frequency of 50 kHz. The laser scanning path had little influence on the surface roughness, but had a major impact on the geometrical deviation of the treated sample. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue 3D Printing: Materials, Properties, and Applications)

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14 pages, 9366 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Microstructural Control Strategy Based on Optimizing Laser Powder Bed Fusion for Different Hastelloy X Powder Size

by Jee-Eun Jang, Woosung Kim, Ji-Hyun Sung, Young-Joo Kim, Sung-Hyuk Park and Da-Hye Kim

Materials 2022, 15(18), 6191; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma15186191 - 6 Sep 2022

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2038

Abstract

In additive manufacturing (AM), the powder properties and laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) process parameters influence the quality of materials and building parts. However, the relationship between the size of the powder, LPBF process parameters, and mechanical properties is not well-established. In addition, Hastelloy X (HX) is attracting attention for its excellent high-temperature properties, but it is difficult to process, such as by cutting and milling, because of its high hardness and high ductility. This can be overcome by applying the AM process. We compared the LPBF window process maps for two HX powders of different sizes. Despite their small difference of 19.7% in particle size, it was confirmed that the difference in laser power was more than 40 W, the difference in scan speed was more than 100 mm/s, and the difference in energy density was more than 20% under the optimal process conditions. The as-built specimen had a larger molten-pool size as the energy density was higher, which resulted in the differences in mechanical properties at room temperature and high temperature (816 °C). We considered the control of the size of the powder to obtain the properties required for each temperature condition. The microstructures and mechanical properties of the as-built LPBF specimens were also investigated and compared with those of cast HX. Because of the rapid melting and solidification processes in LPBF, the as-built HX exhibited nano-sized dendrite structures and large internal strain energy. This resulted in the as-built LPBF exhibiting a higher room-temperature tensile strength than the cast material. Under high-temperature conditions, the grain boundary of the as-built LPBF acts as a sliding path, and the as-built LPBF HX showed significantly better high-temperature tensile strength characteristics than the cast HX. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue 3D Printing: Materials, Properties, and Applications)

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21 pages, 5376 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Importance of Build Design Parameters to the Fatigue Strength of Ti6Al4V in Electron Beam Melting Additive Manufacturing

by Sean Ghods, Reid Schur, Alex Montelione, Rick Schleusener, Dwayne D. Arola and Mamidala Ramulu

Materials 2022, 15(16), 5617; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma15165617 - 16 Aug 2022

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 1691

Abstract

The fatigue properties of metals resulting from Powder Bed Fusion (PBF) is critically important for safety-critical applications. Here, the fatigue life of Grade 5 Ti6Al4V from Electron Beam PBF was investigated with respect to several build and component design parameters using a design of experiments (DOE). Part size (i.e., diameter), part proximity, and part location within the build envelope were considered. Overall, metal in the as-built condition (i.e., no post-process machining) exhibited a significantly lower fatigue life than the machined surface condition. In both conditions, the fatigue life decreased significantly with the decreasing part diameter and increasing radial distance; height was not a significant effect in the machined condition. Whereas the surface topography served as the origin of failure for the as-built condition, the internal lack of fusion (LOF) defects, exposed surface LOF defects, and rogue defects served as the origins for the machined condition. Porosity parameters including size, location, and morphology were determined by X-ray micro-computed tomography (XCT) and introduced within regression models for fatigue life prediction. The greatest resistance to fatigue failure is obtained when parts are placed near the center of the build plane to minimize the detrimental porosity. Machining can improve the fatigue life, but only if performed to a depth that minimizes the underlying porosity. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue 3D Printing: Materials, Properties, and Applications)

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15 pages, 26634 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Influence of Intralayer Porosity and Phase Transition on Corrosion Fatigue of Additively Manufactured 316L Stainless Steel Obtained by Direct Energy Deposition Process

by Maxim Bassis, Tomer Ron, Avi Leon, Abram Kotliar, Rony Kotliar, Amnon Shirizly and Eli Aghion

Materials 2022, 15(16), 5481; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma15165481 - 9 Aug 2022

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1915

Abstract

A direct energy deposition (DED) process using wires is considered an additive manufacturing technology that can produce large components at an affordable cost. However, the high deposition rate of the DED process is usually accompanied by poor surface quality and inherent printing defects. These imperfections can have a detrimental effect on fatigue endurance and corrosion fatigue resistance. The aim of this study was to evaluate the critical effect of phase transition and printing defects on the corrosion fatigue behavior of 316L stainless steel produced by a wire laser additive manufacturing (WLAM) process. For comparison, a standard AISI 316L stainless steel with a regular austenitic microstructure was studied as a counterpart alloy. The structural assessment of printing defects was performed using a three-dimensional non-destructive method in the form of X-ray microtomography (CT) analysis. The microstructure was evaluated by optical and scanning electron microscopy, while general electrochemical characteristics and corrosion performance were assessed by cyclic potentiodynamic polarization (CCP) analysis and immersion tests. The fatigue endurance in air and in a simulated corrosive environment was examined using a rotating fatigue setup. The obtained results clearly demonstrate the inferior corrosion fatigue endurance of the 316L alloy produced by the WLAM process compared to its AISI counterpart alloy. This was mainly related to the drawbacks of WLAM alloys in terms of having a duplex microstructure (austenitic matrix and secondary delta-ferrite phase), reduced passivity, and a significantly increased amount of intralayer porosity that acts as a stress intensifier of fatigue cracking. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue 3D Printing: Materials, Properties, and Applications)

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19 pages, 18316 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Influence of the Gradient Infill of PLA Samples Produced with the FDM Technique on Their Mechanical Properties

by Joanna Maszybrocka, Michał Dworak, Grażyna Nowakowska, Patrycja Osak and Bożena Łosiewicz

Materials 2022, 15(4), 1304; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma15041304 - 10 Feb 2022

Cited by 15 | Viewed by 2529

Abstract

Three-dimensional printing is a dynamically developing field of industry. Its main advantage is the small amount of waste, no need to use specialized tools, and easy control of the mechanical properties of the printed model. One of the most popular techniques of 3D printing is FDM. The main factor influencing the mechanical properties of 3D-printed materials is the filling density. The aim of this study was to determine the mechanical properties of porous structures with a porosity gradient of PLA samples printed using the FDM technique. The accuracy of mapping the structures by computed tomography was assessed, and then a static compression test was performed. It has been shown that the strength properties increased with the increase in the filling density. The highest value of compression strength, amounting to 41.2 MPa, was observed for samples made of PLA with an 80% filling degree, whereas the lowest value of compression strength was found in PLA-T samples with a filling degree of 10%, reaching only 0.6 MPa. It was found that not only the core filling density, but also the outer layers, influences the mechanical properties. The assessment of spatial architecture allowed for a qualitative and quantitative assessment. The obtained images from the computed tomograph showed that the designed sample models were correctly reproduced in the entire volume. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue 3D Printing: Materials, Properties, and Applications)

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