Germany Fraunhofer Institute for Production Technology and Advanced Materials (Fraunhofer IFAM) to Ti-6Al-4V alloy powder suspension as raw material, through the suspension gel casting process and sintering heat treatment, the manufacture of a complete titanium alloy parts, simplified titanium alloy parts of the additive manufacturing process, and has the advantages of low cost, simple processing, high surface quality, suitable for low gravity conditions and so on. , which is expected to be used in the future for the additive manufacturing of titanium alloy parts in the aerospace field.
The Fraunhofer Institute for Production Technology and Advanced Materials (FIPT) has patented MoldJet®, a process that offers the advantage of a complete production line from metal paste development, print testing, geometry optimization and heat treatment (thermal degreasing and sintering) for the cost-effective manufacture of functional components.
The Fraunhofer Institute for Production Technology and Advanced Materials is part of the Fraunhofer Society for the Promotion of Applied Research. With dozens of institutes in different directions in the field of applied technology, it is one of the largest scientific research organizations in Germany and one of the key players in Germany's "Industry 4.0" strategy for the development of advanced manufacturing.
In 2019, the institute set up an innovation center focusing on the integrated innovation of equipment and technology for 3D printing, introducing a number of the latest equipment and production lines in the field of 3D printing, providing services in different aspects of 3D printing from design, production to post-processing, and devoting itself to innovative research in this field of applied technology. The Innovation Center adopts the "electron beam selective melting and forming technology" to carry out research in the field of 3D printing, which is a technology that bombards the powder with an electron beam, causing it to melt and then solidify and be deposited into shape. The advantages of this technology are that it does not require the use of other equipment or molds, is flexible and saves raw materials.
In addition, the center will also be committed to seeking new breakthroughs for traditional 3D printing technology. For example, the 3D printing production line is currently using the "thermal melting layer method", in which thermoplastic materials are extruded according to a model and then solidified.
