Electron beam melting

For other uses, see electron beam furnace.

Electron beam melting (EBM) is a type of additive manufacturing (AM) for metal parts, originally patented and developed by Arcam.[1] ASTM classifies EBM as a powder bed fusion technique,[2] which also includes selective laser melting (SLM). The main difference is that EBM uses an electron beam as its power source, as opposed to a laser. EBM technology manufactures parts by melting metal powder layer by layer with an electron beam in a high vacuum. In contrast to sintering techniques, both EBM and SLM achieve full melting of the metal powder. The term selective laser sintering (SLS) is mostly historical and is sometimes used to describe full melting or plastic processes.[2]

Technology

This solid freeform fabrication method produces fully dense metal parts directly from metal powder with characteristics of the target material. The EBM machine reads data from a 3D CAD model and lays down successive layers of powdered material. These layers are melted together utilizing a computer controlled electron beam. In this way it builds up the parts. The process takes place under vacuum, which makes it suited to manufacture parts in reactive materials with a high affinity for oxygen, e.g. titanium.[3] The process is known to operate at higher temperatures (up to 1000 °C), which can lead to differences in phase formation though solidification and solid state phase transformation.[4]

The powder feedstock is typically pre-alloyed, as opposed to a mixture. That aspect allows classification of EBM with selective laser melting (SLM) where competing technologies like SLS and DMLS require thermal treatment after fabrication. Compared to SLM and DMLS, EBM has a generally superior build rate because of its higher energy density and scanning method.

Electron Beam Melting Hardware
Arcam S12 
Arcam A2 
Arcam Q10 
System for recovering metal powders used in EBM additive manufacturing. 

Research Developments

Recent work has been published by ORNL, demonstrating the use of EBM technology to control local crystallographic grain orientations in Inconel.[5] Other notable developments have focused on the development of process parameters to produced parts out of alloys such as copper,[6] niobium,[7] Al 2024,[8] bulk metallic glass,[9] stainless steel, and titanium aluminide. Currently commercial materials for EBM include commercially pure Titanium, Ti-6Al-4V,[10] CoCr, Inconel 718,[11] and Inconel 625.[12]

Market

Titanium alloys are widely used with this technology which makes it a suitable choice for the medical implant market.

CE-certified acetabular cups are in series production with EBM since 2007 by two European orthopedic implant manufacturers, Adler Ortho and Lima Corporate.

The U.S. implant manufacturer Exactech has also received FDA clearance for an acetabular cup manufactured with the EBM technology.

Aerospace and other highly demanding mechanical applications are also targeted.

The EBM process has been developed for manufacturing parts in gamma titanium aluminide, and is currently being developed by Avio S.p.A. and General Electric Aviation for the production of turbine blades in γ-TiAl for gas-turbine engines.[13]

See also

References

  1. ↑ http://www.google.com/patents/US7537722
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 ASTM International, ASTM F2792-12a, http://www.astm.org/Standards/F2792.htm
  3. ↑ "Electron Beam Melting". Thre3d.com. Retrieved 28 January 2014.
  4. ↑ Sames et al., "Thermal effects on microstructural heterogeneity of Inconel 718 materials fabricated by electron beam melting", http://dx.doi.org/10.1557/jmr.2014.140
  5. ↑ "ORNL research reveals unique capabilities of 3-D printing", http://www.ornl.gov/ornl/news/news-releases/2014/ornl-research-reveals-unique-capabilities-of-3-d-printing-
  6. ↑ Frigola et al., "Fabricating Copper Components with Electron Beam Melting", http://www.asminternational.org/documents/10192/19735983/amp17207p20.pdf/2a87d5ae-86ec-4f27-bdd1-f74af1a2f523
  7. ↑ Martinez et al., "Microstructures of Niobium Components Fabricated by Electron Beam Melting", http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs13632-013-0073-9
  8. ↑ Mahale, Ph.D. Thesis, NCSU 2009, http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2009PhDT.......262M
  9. ↑ http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/11/121119114157.htm
  10. ↑ http://www.arcam.com/technology/electron-beam-melting/materials/
  11. ↑ Sames et al., "Effect of Process Control and Powder Quality on Inconel 718 Produced Using Electron Beam Melting", http://www.programmaster.org/PM/PM.nsf/ViewSessionSheets?OpenAgent&ParentUNID=733A03EC3B3DE9B485257C5A00064CE6
  12. ↑ Murr et al., "Fabrication of Metal and Alloy Components by Additive Manufacturing: Examples of 3D Materials Science", http://www.jmrt.com.br/en/fabrication-of-metal-and-alloy/articulo/90195169/
  13. ↑ http://3dprint.com/12262/ge-ebm-3d-printing/

Further reading

External links