We continue to introduce you to various 3D printing technologies. Next in line is SLM.

SLM, or Selective laser melting is a unique additive method that involves creating various products using laser melting of metal powder according to specified CAD models. During the work, only high power lasers are used.

SLM machines help solve complex problems in industrial enterprises specializing in the production of machines in the aerospace, energy, mechanical engineering and instrument making sectors.

In addition, such installations are used in institutes, design bureaus, as well as in the process of research and experimental work.

Technology

The 3D printing process begins like this: a three-dimensional digital model is divided into layers so that a two-dimensional image can be created for each. The layer thickness varies from 20 to 100 microns.

The file, which contains all the parameters, is sent to special machine software, which analyzes the data using the technical capabilities of the device. As a result, the product construction starts.

The creation cycle of each layer consists of three stages:

• applying a layer of powder to the work plate;
• laser scanning of the layer cross-section;
• lowering the slab to the depth of the well, which corresponds to the thickness of the layer.

The construction of any object takes place in the working chamber of an SLM printer. It is completely filled with an inert gas: argon or nitrogen. The choice of gas depends on the material from which the powder is made.

Upon completion of construction, the product is taken out of the machine with the working plate, separated mechanically and post-processing is carried out.

Advantages of Selective Laser Melting

This method is so universal that it has more strengths than it might seem at first:

• creation of objects of complex geometric shapes with internal cavities and conformal cooling channels;
• production of products without expensive equipment;
• the resulting products are light;
• saving on printing consumables;
• the possibility of reusing the powder after the sifting stage.

Application

The method of selective laser melting can be used in the production process of products to work as part of various components and assemblies, the construction of complex geometric structures and formative elements of molds for casting thermoplastics, individual prostheses and implants for dentistry, as well as the production of stamps.

Consumables

Most often, powders from metals and alloys such as stainless steel, tool steel, alloys of cobalt, chromium and titanium, aluminum, gold, silver, and platinum are used as consumables.

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3D printing for industry: a detailed overview of the latest equipment and technologies

At the exhibition formnext Traditionally, the elite from the world of additive technologies and 3D printing gather. World-class experts have noted the transition from the creation of prototypes to the production of parts and blanks from metals and functional materials.

Classic SLM, EBM and DMD technologies when working with metals have been complemented by relatively new CSF and FDM-like technologies. A detailed overview of equipment, materials and advanced solutions presented in Frankfurt am Main, from expert Kirill Kazmirchuk.

Selective laser melting(SLM - Selective Laser Melting)

A hybrid system that uses the SLM process and 3-axis CNC machining in one piece of equipment.

This approach makes it possible to obtain metal parts with internal channels of low roughness.

Working area: 600 x 600 x 500 mm

Trumpf TruPrint 5000

SLM machine from a company that produces a wide range of laser equipment. The special feature of TruPrint 5000 is its replaceable working modules. They allow you to launch a construction without lengthy preparation. “Unpacking” of the build takes place outside the machine in a special “unpacking-cleaning” station.

Round working area: Ø300 x 400 mm

Materials: Al, Ti, Ni, Co-Cr, Steel.

SLM-Solutions SLM 800

The largest machine from the company, a pioneer in the SLM technology segment. At the beginning of 2017, the purchase of SLM-Solutions by industry giant General Electric was announced. The deal did not take place due to differences of opinion on the value of the shares. As a result, GE acquired another company, Concept Laser.

Car SLM 800 was announced at formnext-2016 and presented to the public at the 2017 exhibition. During the exhibition, according to SLM-Solutions itself, twenty units of this equipment were sold.

Working area: 280 x 500 x 800 mm

Materials: Al, Ti, Ni, Co-Cr, Steel.

Since the beginning of the year, more than 15 cars have been sold SLM 500, mainly to China.

Electro Optical Systems M400-4

SLM machine with working area 400 x 400 x 400 mm

Materials: Al, Ti, Ni, Co-Cr, Steel.

Four lasers are used, each covering a quarter of the working area. This allows you to significantly reduce the time for building a large number of small parts, but when manufacturing one large part, the time is reduced by up to 10%. Potentially, thermal distortion is reduced due to a more uniform fusion process.

Additive IndustriesMetalFab1

MetalFab1 is a complex of equipment: SLM machine + cleaning station + heat treatment furnace. Technologically, transitions take place in an isolated space; accordingly, the operator’s contact with metal powders is reduced.

Working area 420 x 420 x 400 mm

Materials: Al, Ti, Ni, Co-Cr, Steel.

Concept Laser (company acquiredGeneral Electric at the beginning of 2017)

The car was presented Atlas with a working area of ​​1000 x 1000 x 1000 mm.

Shown is a prototype of this machine and a part built on a 1000 x 1000 mm platform.

Materials: Al, Ti, Ni, Co-Cr, Steel.

The release date has not been made public.

Currently the current model is X- line 2000 with two lasers and a working area of ​​800 x 400 x 500 mm.

Orlas Creator

ORlaser has been known to develop heads for hot laser powder deposition for several years. Now we have introduced our own SLM machine with a working area of ​​Ø 100 mm x 110 mm.

This is a small device with a cylindrical working area. Additionally, it can be equipped with a spindle for CNC machining.

A French company developing with the active participation of tire manufacturer Michelin. The main products are SLM layer-by-layer synthesis machines.

The peculiarity of these installations is that they specialize in using finer metal powder (about 20 microns), while the typical particle size in similar equipment is 40 - 60 microns. A smaller particle size, on the one hand, provides better surface quality and elaboration of small geometric details, on the other hand, it imposes a significant limitation on the use of powder. Finer powder is more difficult to handle and requires isolated rooms and protective equipment for operators.

Working area: 350 x 350 x 350 mm.

DMG MORI

The company is a manufacturer of CNC machines for turning, turning-milling and milling groups. For about five years, it has been promoting to the market a hybrid technology for manufacturing metal parts: DMD surfacing + CNC machining. Hybrid technology in the automotive industry is mainly suitable for repair tasks - restoration of crankshaft journals, camshaft cams.

In 2017, the LASERTEC 30 SLM SLM machine of its own design with a working area of ​​300 x 300 x 300 mm was shown.

The applicability of the technology for the manufacture of heat exchangers and small brackets with complex geometry is shown.

A Portuguese company that produces a wide range of equipment for metal processing (hydraulic sheet benders, guillotine metal cutting, laser cutting, etc.). The newcomer to additive technologies, however, presented what they claim is the largest SLM machine with a working area of ​​1000 x 1000 x 500 mm.

The machine uses only one laser, and the principle of a movable construction zone allows it to cover a large area. The construction takes place on a platform measuring 1000 x 1000 mm; a square chamber with a radiation source and a local supply of inert gas moves above it. The construction process is step-by-step, and the metal is fused in the required places. Potentially, this approach involves greater consumption of inert gas and limits the construction of large parts. At the moment, the process is debugged only for steels.

3 D Systems

An interesting addition to the company’s line is the ProX 320 SLM machine with a working area of ​​275 x 275 x 420 mm.

An SLM machine was also announced DMP8500 with a working area of ​​500 x 500 x 500mm. The advantage of 3D Systems machines is the ability to work with both standard powder of 40-60 microns and fine powder of about 20 microns.

E.B.M.-technologies

Arcam Q20 Plus(purchasedGeneral Electric at the beginning of 2017)

The only company is a manufacturer of EBM machines. The equipment is specialized for the use of titanium alloys. Using an electron beam instead of a laser can significantly improve the quality of metal fusion and increase speed.

Working area: Ø 350 x 380 mm.

Material: Ti6Al4V.

Cold gas-dynamic surfacing (cold spray)

The essence of the technology is to apply powder particles using a supersonic jet of transport inert gas. Due to the high speed, the particles adhere to the surface, providing a dense metal structure. Potentially, this approach allows the construction of workpieces in less time than laser cladding, due to the absence of heating and subsequent cooling.

SPEE3D

The American company SPEE3D introduced in 2017 a hybrid machine that allows you to create metal blanks using cold gas-dynamic surfacing followed by CNC processing.

Due to technological limitations, the technology is applicable for creating workpieces for subsequent CNC processing. The quality of the surface shown in the photo is comparable to casting.

Aluminum and copper alloys can be applied.

The German company - manufacturer of CNC machines presented its own hybrid equipment CSF + CNC machining.

Parts are formed sequentially from several materials, and cold surfacing is used to create cooling channels and cavities inside the molds. A more fusible metal is applied to the required areas and acts as a removable support. Aluminum and copper alloys can be applied.

ImpactInnovations

Equipment for cold gas-dynamic surfacing with switching of materials during the manufacturing process. Allows the application of aluminum and copper alloys (including on the surface of non-metals). The technology can be useful in creating bimetallic products (sliding bearings), as well as in applying conductive “paths” to textolite or other polymer products.

Hot surfacing

The essence of the technology is to apply powder particles using a jet of transport and protective inert gas; the metal melts upon contact with a laser-heated surface.

The technology is suitable for the manufacture of parts to a very limited extent, mainly only for creating a body. More suitable for repairing shafts and other rotating bodies.

InssTek,BeAM- Korean and French companies, respectively. The equipment is built on a similar principle and has similar capabilities.

It is possible to “switch” materials during the manufacturing process.

InssTek has a large working area of ​​4000 x 1000 x 1000 mm.

Products require subsequent thermal and mechanical treatment.

DMGMORI

Pioneer in hybrid (surfacing + CNC) technology for metal products. First, the lasertec 65 3D combination machine was released, then the lasertec 4300 3D was added to the hybrid line.

Similar machines are manufactured today by the Yamazaki Mazak company.

CEFERTEC

The equipment was developed with the participation of the FIT AG service bureau and, to put it simply, is a CNC metal welding machine.

Built on the basis of a portal and a rotary table.

The technology allows you to quickly create metal blanks. The approach raises many questions about product quality and properties, as well as inevitable warping during a localized thermal process.

Metals and FDM technology

The principle of construction is the extrusion of a plastic material (filled with metal powder) through a die. After creating a polymer-metal model, it is sintered in an oven (thermal or microwave). At this stage, the polymer binder evaporates and the metal particles sinter. In this case, the shrinkage of the part is 18-20%, see photo below. According to anecdotal evidence, this technology potentially allows parts to be built up to 100 times faster.

DesktopMetal And Markforged- American companies, they use similar technology, the working area is 330 x 330 x 330 mm and 250 x 220 x 200 mm, respectively. It is worth noting the significant difference in the degree of readiness for delivery. If DesktopMetal is not ready to supply equipment even to the local market, then Markforged is ready to supply both the USA and Europe. A feature of all Markforged equipment is that the file is sent for construction when connected to the Internet and company servers, which raises the issue of maintaining trade secrets.

On the one hand, FDM technology looks promising because it makes it possible to produce metal parts without the need to work with difficult-to-handle metal powders. On the other hand, many questions remain, such as the maximum wall thickness (may be limited due to the need to remove the binder), the lack of similar equipment with a large working area, etc. The technology will certainly find its niche, but it cannot be considered as a “killer” or replacement for SLM technology.

X- Jet

An Israeli company, the main staff of which are employees of Objet, the pioneer of PolyJet technology.

An analogue of this technology is also used in X-jet equipment: a water-based liquid binder is applied to the platform, in which metal or ceramic particles are distributed. The filler does not stick together and does not precipitate due to van der Waals forces.

The parts also require heat (and possibly pressure) treatment after the layer-by-layer synthesis process. The manufacturer does not specify the details of the technical process, and the metal and ceramic samples shown at the exhibition do not exceed a few centimeters in size, but the detailing is at a high level.

Working area 500 x 280 x 200 mm.

High strength PEEK thermoplastics

Group materials PEEK(polyetheretherketone) are very interesting for direct production due to their strength and heat resistance. Heat resistance up to 250 °C, and tensile strength 100 MPa (for comparison, for aluminum, depending on the alloy, it varies from 100 to 350 MPa). It is difficult to process such material due to its high melting point - above 340 °C. Three FDM machines for working with PEEK were presented at once: INNOVATOR 2 PEEK, INTAMSYS PEEK And GEWO 3D PEEK.

The largest machine has a working area of ​​450 x 450 x 600 mm and an extruder temperature of up to 450 °C.

Sand printers for foundries

VoxelJet

ExOne and Voxeljet were originally one and created equipment for working with sand and polymer materials for foundry applications.

The companies split in 2003, Voxeljet continues to develop both areas, while ExOne (formerly Prometal RCT) focuses only on sand technology and partly on working with steel-bronze materials.

Voxeljet's range includes several systems that can process sand to create molds and cores. All of them are similar in mechanics and process to ExOne equipment.

As part of formnext-2017, the company presented a system for working with functional polymer materials. The technology is based on the already mastered PolyJet with a photosensitive binder; this not only makes it possible to achieve improved properties, but also allows the creation of products of higher resolution. The technology is similar to what Hewlett Packard showed at the 2016 exhibition.

A Korean company that has several industrial additive manufacturing machines in its lineup:

– sand PolyJet printer with a working area of ​​300 x 420 x 150 (inorganic binder, more environmentally friendly);

– sand SLS printer with a working area of ​​600 x 400 x 400;

– SLM machine with a working area of ​​350 x 300 mm;

– hybrid machine (surfacing + CNC processing) with a working area of ​​250 x 250 x 250 mm.

Metal powders

The largest manufacturers of metal powder compositions were widely represented at the exhibition: Haraeus,LPWSMTChina,Oerlikon,EPMA And Polema(Russia).

AtomizerATOone

Installation for the production of powder metal compositions for layer-by-layer synthesis machines from the Polish company 3D lab.

This is an “office” atomizer with a height of no more than 2 meters; the typical size of industrial atomizers is 5-10 m in height and about 4 m in diameter.

Wire is used as the processing material, and the equipment’s capacity allows it to produce up to 200 grams per day.

Polymer materials and equipment

Composites

Markforged

FDM equipment is presented that allows you to work with thermoplastics filled with carbon, Kevlar and glass fibers. They can be either continuous or chopped.

The cost of installation is about 100-1000 euros.

In the photo from top to bottom:

– part made of Onyx material (chopped fiber);

– sectional view of a part made of Onyx material (chopped fiber);

– reinforced with continuous Kevlar;

– reinforced with continuous glass fiber;

– reinforced with continuous carbon fiber.

Stratasys

The company introduced Nylon CF material, compatible with the Russian Fortus 450mc FDM machine. It is a polyamide filled with chopped carbon fibers.

It provides better mechanical properties compared to standard unfilled materials. The photo shows a comparison of the behavior of materials under loading (right ABS, in the center Nylon CF, left Nylon 12).

Desktop SLA and elastic materials

DigitalWax And atum 3D

The working area of ​​the larger machine is 300 x 300 x 300 mm, photopolymer materials are available, both functional and elastic.

UNIZ SLA

The Chinese company UNIZ is a newcomer to the market. Two desktop SLA machines are presented with working areas: 315 x 185 x 450 and 192 x 122 x 200. The manufacturer claims that this is the fastest SLA machine. Experts have yet to figure out what kind of materials the system uses and what determines the speed of construction of 2500 cubic meters. cm per hour (50% filling).

Both systems use illumination of the photopolymer using LEDs (LCD-Stereolithography).

Japanese company with a long history. Engaged in the production of a variety of high-precision equipment - from printers to microscopes. Presented its own Agilista 3D printer using PolyJet technology. The emphasis is on the ability to produce flexible and heat-resistant silicone products. Such equipment can be useful in the manufacture of small series of grommets, door seals, air duct pipes, etc.

Working area: 297 x 210 x 200 mm.

Materials: polymer compositions based on silicone, including heat-resistant up to 100 °C.

Electro Optical Systems

SLS machine P500 from EOS - one of the market leaders. Working area 500 x 330 x 400 mm, two 70W lasers for accelerated work, sintering temperature up to 300 °C and building speed up to 6.6 liters per hour (20% more than market analogues).

The system is equipped with a replaceable work area with controlled cooling, which increases the load percentage and dimensional stability of products. The SLS machine software allows you to connect to the enterprise's ERP system and monitor the job completion percentage in real time.

Material: polyamide, PEKK in development.

Polish SLS machine, capable of working with polyamide powder.

Working area: 350 x 350 x 600 mm.

Large SLA machines

RPS was founded in the UK by employees of DTM and 3D Systems and has been in business for over ten years.

It began its activities with the maintenance and restoration of layer-by-layer synthesis machines.

A large SLA machine was released in 2016 NEO 800 own development.

Working area: 800 x 800 x 600 mm.

Materials: photopolymer compositions from DSM Somos and any others.

Stereolithography machine from a European company, manufactured in China.

Working area: 700 x 700 x 450 mm.

Materials: photopolymer compositions from DSM Somos and any others, including those from Raplas.

Ceramics

To work with ceramics, as a rule, they use SLA technology, these are companies Ceramaker And Lithoz.

In the classic SLA process, a workpiece is created, the so-called green model. After construction, it undergoes a heat treatment procedure, where the polymer component is removed and ceramic particles are sintered.

Services

In Europe, production sites are successfully developing, providing services for the production of prototypes from polymers, composites and metals using additive technologies.

The leading companies in this market are: PolyShape, Hoffmann, CitimGMBH,FITA.G.. The latter recently opened a branch in Russia.

The arsenal of such companies includes a wide range of DMD, SLM, SLS, FDM, EBM equipment; the number of additive manufacturing employees is usually about 100-200 people. The companies are in demand on the market; below are the revenue indicators for 2016: Hofmann GMBH – $833.2 million, CITIM GMBH – $27.3 million, FIT AG – $24 million.

It should be noted that in October 2017 the plant ACTech was acquired by Materialize and will soon develop direct production of metal parts using additive technologies.

SLM or Selective laser melting is an innovative technology for the production of complex products by laser melting of metal powder using mathematical CAD models (3D metal printing). With the help of SLM, they create both precision metal parts for work as part of components and assemblies, and non-separable structures that change geometry during operation.

The technology is an additive manufacturing method and uses high-power lasers to create three-dimensional physical objects. This process successfully replaces traditional production methods, since the physical and mechanical properties of products built using SLM technology often exceed the properties of products manufactured using traditional technologies.

SLM installations help solve complex production problems of industrial enterprises operating in the aerospace, energy, mechanical engineering and instrumentation industries. The installations are also used in universities, design bureaus, and are used in research and experimental work.

The official term to describe the technology is “laser sintering,” although it is somewhat misleading, since the materials (powders) are not sintered, but melted until a homogeneous (thick, pasty) mass is formed.

Advantages

1. Solving complex technological problems

• Production of products with complex geometries, with internal cavities and conformal cooling channels

• The ability to build complex products without manufacturing expensive equipment

• Construction of products with internal cavities

• Construction occurs by layer-by-layer adding the required amount of material to the “body” of the product. 97-99% of the powder not used in the construction after sifting is suitable for reuse. 3-9% of the material used to construct supports is disposed of along with substandard unfused powder that has not undergone sieving.
• Reducing costs for the production of complex products, because there is no need to manufacture expensive equipment.

Areas of use

• Manufacturing of functional parts for work as part of various components and assemblies
• Manufacturing of complex structures, including non-separable structures that change geometry during operation, as well as those containing many elements
• Production of forming elements of molds for casting thermoplastics and lightweight materials
• Production of technical prototypes to test product designs
• Creation of forming inserts for die casting
• Production of customized dental prostheses and implants
• Making stamps.

How it works

The printing process begins by dividing a digital 3D model of a product into layers ranging from 20 to 100 microns thick to create a 2D image of each layer of the product. The industry standard format is the STL file. This file enters special machine software, where the information is analyzed and compared with the technical capabilities of the machine.

Based on the data obtained, a production construction cycle is launched, consisting of many cycles of constructing individual layers of the product.

The layer construction cycle consists of standard operations:

1. applying a layer of powder of a given thickness (20-100 microns) to a build plate mounted on a heated build platform;
2. scanning a cross-section of a product layer with a laser beam;
3. lowering the platform deep into the construction well by an amount corresponding to the thickness of the construction layer.

The process of building products takes place in the SLM chamber of the machine, filled with inert gas argon or nitrogen (depending on the type of powder from which the construction takes place), with its laminar flow. The main consumption of inert gas occurs at the beginning of work, when purging the construction chamber, when air is completely removed from it (the permissible oxygen content is less than 0.15%).

After construction, the product along with the slab is removed from the SLM chamber of the machine, after which the product is separated from the slab mechanically. Supports are removed from the constructed product, and finishing processing of the constructed product is performed.

The almost complete absence of oxygen avoids oxidation of the consumable material, which makes printing with materials such as titanium possible.

Materials

The most popular materials are powdered metals and alloys, including stainless steel, tool steel, cobalt-chrome alloys, titanium alloys, titanium, aluminum, gold, platinum, etc.

Products made with SLM Solutions 3D machines

Products made by Realizer 3D machines

Video: using SLM technology

A leader in the development of the latest metal 3D printing technologies, they completed a project to produce a titanium product for the aerospace industry measuring 31 x 22.2 and 21.9 cm in diameter.

To date, this is the largest part manufactured using the SLM 280 additive machine with two 400-watt lasers. It was this machine that made it possible to print a product of this size in a relatively short time compared to traditional manufacturing technology.

The standard size of the build platform in 3D printers of this class is 250 mm x 250 mm. However, the SLM 280 has a larger platform measuring 280 mm x 280 mm, which makes it possible to print larger products.

Developments in selective laser melting (SLM) metal 3D printing (including titanium) for the aerospace industry, due to its high strength and light weight, have made SLM Solutions one of the leading OEM manufacturers. SLM Solutions has overcome build chamber size limitations and other challenges encountered in large titanium fabrication and continues to improve its technology in this area.

Titanium powder 3D printing process

As Mike Hansen, application engineer for SLM Solutions North America, explains, advances in titanium 3D printing are particularly important: titanium is a very hard metal and is prone to cracking due to high residual stresses, which has become a serious problem. “The geometry of the part was not particularly complex, but the difficulty was in producing such a large product from titanium using additive technology,” the engineer noted.

A system developed and patented by SLM Solutions, consisting of two lasers, helped solve this problem. Processing the product in the overlap zone simultaneously with two lasers made it possible not only to speed up the printing process, but also to produce a larger product. SLM Solutions conducted overlap tests on the material, which confirmed that there was no difference in material quality between the areas printed with one laser and the overlap areas where two lasers alternated between the two lasers. SLM Solutions engineers went through several iterations to prepare the file and print several test samples to ensure the task would be completed. The client needed a way to produce this product that would save cost, time, and reduce weight.

“This piece is remarkable for its size and the fact that it was produced from titanium in six and a half days without interruption during the printing process,” says Hansen. “The fact that the SLM 3D printer can operate for such a long time without requiring cleaning or other maintenance is extremely important in itself.”

While 3D printing technology typically gets attention for its ability to reproduce unique geometries, this aerospace product was not particularly challenging in that regard. However, producing a titanium part of this size in such a short time would hardly be possible using traditional machining technology.

The manufacturing process using traditional machining would take several weeks.

Richard Grylls, Ph.D., Metallurgical Engineering, Application Manager and Technical Director, SLM Solutions North America, commented: “Given the size of the product, the manufacturing process would have taken several weeks using traditional machining; this would require four or five changeovers. In other words, it would be a very expensive process. It would take even longer to produce a product using casting technology because tooling would be required, and the manufacturing process could take up to six months. In addition, traditional equipment is expensive. We completed the task much faster, although the cost of the product was higher. However, given the time saved, the cost is justified for a mission-critical product of this size.”

Turbine blade additively printed on SLM 280HL

SLM Solutions has achieved impressive results in terms of production speed, quality and density of the final product. Hansen noted that “meeting the stringent quality requirements and material specifications when using titanium in highly regulated industries such as aerospace and automotive requires extensive material testing and parameter optimization to ensure the customer gets exactly what they need.” "

The quality control requirements in the aerospace industry are quite extensive: a non-destructive testing method such as CT scanning is typically used to test the product for voids or porosity, but the customer can choose destructive testing and cut the product. “We first carried out non-destructive testing of the product, and then tested it under real-life conditions by installing the product on an engine and operating it to failure,” says Hansen.

As additive manufacturing technology advances, SLM Solutions is seeing increasing demand for its solutions. However, materials and manufacturing processes are improving so quickly that standards cannot keep up. “We are increasingly being approached by companies that use traditional technologies but are looking to increase production speed while maintaining quality and want to take advantage of the benefits of additive manufacturing,” added Hansen. “This industry is changing literally every day and moving very quickly, but we see a gap between the pace of development of additive manufacturing technologies and the ability of some industries, particularly aerospace and automotive, to certify new materials and technologies as quickly.”

Product dimensions: 31 x 22.2 cm, diameter 21.9 cm
Material: Ti64
Printing time: 6.5 days
Additive machine: SLM 280 with two 400 W lasers

SLM technology - layer-by-layer laser melting of metal powders - is one of the methods of additive manufacturing of products, which has been actively gaining momentum in the last 10 years. Today it is already quite well known to production workers. This technology has a lot of advantages, but, nevertheless, when operating equipment based on it, it never ceases to amaze with new possibilities. The leader in the production of equipment for this technology is the German company SLM Solutions.

Recently, it has been represented in Ukraine by the Stan-Komplekt joint venture.

Selective laser melting (SLM) technology is a powerful manufacturing solution for businesses that require fast, high-quality production of products from a variety of metals.

SLM installations today are actively used in a variety of industries for the production of master models, mold inserts, prototype parts, finished products made of stainless and tool steel with the presence of cobalt, chromium and nickel, as well as aluminum, titanium, etc. .

The SLM Solutions company is the founder of SLM technology (patents since 1998) and one of the world leaders in the production of equipment based on it.

The company's headquarters and production facilities are located in Lübeck (Germany).

SLM technology

SLM technology is an advanced method of producing metal products through layer-by-layer laser melting of metal powder based on three-dimensional computer design data. Thus, the production time of the product is significantly reduced, since the need for many intermediate operations disappears. The process involves sequentially melting very thin layers of metal powder using modern fiber lasers, thus building up the part layer by layer. Using this technology, precise and homogeneous metal products are created. Using the widest range of quality powder metals and alloys, SLM technology offers unprecedented opportunities for the production of metal parts for industrial use with significant advantages: complexity of shape, minimal wall thickness, combination of materials of different densities, no post-processing, waste-free, cost-effective, etc. Software , supplied complete with installations, has an open architecture, which also expands the capabilities of this equipment.

Operating principle of SLM installations:

• for preliminary data processing in the CAD system, cross sections of the 3D model are obtained with a minimum step;
• the powder is fed from an automatic device onto a heated working platform, then distributed on the plane in a thin layer in two directions;
• modern fiberglass lasers melt a segment of each layer in accordance with the cross-sectional configuration of the part in specified coordinates (2D file).

In this case, each subsequent layer is fused onto the previous one, which ensures the homogeneity of the structure of the product.

This procedure is repeated until the resulting product exactly matches the CAD model. Unmelted metal powder is removed to a special chamber and then used again.

Advantages of SLM installations

The SLM Solutions line of laser sintering equipment uses a number of unique, patent-protected components and technologies:

MULTILASER— simultaneous use of two or more (up to 4) lasers.

Allows you to achieve a 400% increase in productivity compared to machines equipped with a single laser;

UNIQUE DUAL BEAM TECHNOLOGY(Hull-Core). The use of two different lasers (400 and 1000 W) allows sintering to be performed even faster and with better quality. Where maximum precision is required, the installation uses a thinner laser beam, and to increase speed in simple areas, its power and diameter are increased;

POWDER DISTRIBUTION IN TWO DIRECTIONS IMMEDIATELY. The innovative solution of SLM Solutions allows you to reduce the printing time of a product by half;

LARGE CAMERA SIZESlarge camera sizes. Laser sintering machines are designed to produce parts up to 500 × 280 × 365 mm in size (data as of July 2016). In one session you can grow one large product or several small ones;

HIGH SPEED AND PRECISION OF PRODUCTION: SLM Solutions equipment is capable of producing up to 105 cm 3 of finished metal products per hour. This is 1.5-2 times more than installations of this class from other manufacturers. At the same time, the minimum wall thickness is only 180 microns. Along with this, tracking systems for the construction process and quality control ensure a high degree of controllability of the entire production cycle;

WIDE CHOICE OF MATERIALS: stainless steel, tool steel, nickel-based alloys, aluminum, titanium. The most reliable, proven and versatile materials. Thanks to the open software architecture, you can use metal powder from any manufacturer, without additional reconfiguration costs;

SPECIAL SOFTWARE. SLM Solutions laser melting machines are supplied complete with special software - SLM AutoFabMC. It not only simplifies the 3D printing process, but also allows you to optimize production processes as much as possible, reduce construction time and save consumables. The software allows you to work with the most widely used data formats in the production environment.

Main consumers

Aerospace industry