Effect of sintering temperature on microstructure and properties of 3D printing polysilazane reinforced Al_(2)O_(3)core

Ceramic cores are the key intermediate components of hollow blades for aero-engine.Conventional processes,such as hot-press molding and gel film casting,face difficulties in fabricating complex-structured ceramic cores due to the complexity of moulds and long process cycles.Stereolithography 3D printing provides a new idea for the fabrication of complex-structured ceramic cores.The effect of sintering temperature on open porosity,bulk density,weight loss rate,shrinkage rate,flexural strength and microstructure of the Al_(2)O_(3)-based ceramic core doped with 10vol.%polysilazane(PSZ)was studied.The sintering mechanism of PSZ-reinforced ceramic cores was analyzed.Results show that the optimum sintering temperature of PSZ-reinforced ceramic cores is 1,450°C.At this temperature,the open porosity of the ceramic core is 36.60%,bulk density is 2.33 g·cm^(-3),weight loss rate is 22.11%,shrinkage rate along the X,Y,Z directions is 5.72%,5.01%,9.61%,respectively;the flexural strength is 28.794 MPa at 25°C and 13.649 MPa at 1,500°C.Properties of 3D printing PSZ-reinforced ceramic cores can meet the casting requirement of superalloy hollow blades,which is expected to promote the industrial application of 3D printing complex structure ceramic cores.

The role and impact of 3D printing technologies in casting

3D printing is such a magical technology that it extends into almost every sector relating to manufacturing, not to mention casting production. In this paper, the past, present and future of 3D printing in the foundry sector are profoundly reviewed. 3D printing has the potential to supplement or partially replace the casting method. Today, some castings can be directly printed by metal powders, for example, titanium alloys, nickel alloys and steel parts. Meanwhile, 3D printing has found an unique position in other casting aspects as well, such as printing the wax pattern, ceramic shell, sand core, sand mould, etc. Most importantly, 3D printing is not just a manufacturing method, it will also revolutionize the design of products, assemblies and parts, such as castings, patterns, cores, moulds and shells in casting production. The solid structure of castings and moulds will be redesigned in future into truss or spatially open and skeleton structures. This kind of revolution is just sprouting, but it will bring unimaginable impact on manufacturing including casting production. Nobody doubts the potential of 3D printing technologies in manufacturing, but they do have limitations and drawbacks.

Controlled cooling of an aluminum alloy casting based on 3D printed rib reinforced shell mold

3D printing technology has been used for sand molding and core printing, but they simply substitute the traditional molding and core making method without changing the shape or size of the sand mold(core) and their dense structure. In this study, a new type of hollow mold based on 3D printing is presented. The new type of mold is a rib reinforced thickness-varying shell mold. This mold design can realize the controlled cooling of castings, i.e., different cooling rates at different areas, and improve the temperature uniformity of a casting after its solidifi cation. Therefore, the performance of castings can be improved and their residual stress and deformation can be reduced. This kind of new mold was applied to a stress frame of A356 aluminum alloy. The 3D printed rib reinforced thickness-varying shell mold was compared with the traditional dense mold, and the castings obtained by these two kinds of molds were also compared. The experimental results showed that the rib reinforced shell mold increased the cooling rate of the casting by 30%, tensile strength by 17%, yield strength by 11%, elongation by 67%, and decreased its deformation by 43%, while sand consumption was greatly reduced by 90%.

Grain refinement of Mg-Al alloys by optimization of process parameters based on three-dimensional finite element modeling of roll casting

To study the influence of roll casting process parameters on temperature and thermal-stress fields for the AZ31 magnesium alloy sheets,three-dimensional geometric and 3D finite element models for roll casting were established based on the symmetry of roll casting by ANSYS software.Meshing method and smart-sizing algorithm were used to divide finite element mesh in ANSYS software.A series of researches on the temperature and stress distributions during solidification process with different process parameters were done by 3D finite element method.The temperatures of both the liquid-solid two-phase zone and liquid phase zone were elevated with increasing pouring temperature.With the heat transfer coefficient increasing,the two-phase region for liquid-solid becomes smaller.With the pouring temperature increasing and the increase of casting speed,the length of two-phase zone rises.The optimized of process parameters（casting speed 2 m/min,pouring temperature 640 ℃ and heat transfer coefficient 15 kW/（m2·℃） with the water pouring at roller exit was used to produce magnesium alloy AZ31 sheet,and equiaxed grains with the average grain size of 50 μm were achieved after roll casting.The simulation results give better understanding of the temperature variation in phase transformation zone and the formation mechanism of hot cracks in plates during roll casting and help to design the optimized process parameters of roll casting for Mg alloy.

Three-dimensional modeling of effect of surface intermetallic phase on surface defects of Al-Fe-Si aluminum foils during twin-roll casting

Scanning electron microscopy and X-ray energy dispersive spectrum analysis show that the clusters of intermetallic AlFeSi particle are distributed on or near the aluminum foil stock surfaces heterogeneously. 3D finite element modeling shows that these clusters of hard particles induce the fracture of the nano-scale lubricant oil film at first and further lead to severe deformation in the nearby aluminum foil substrate along the rolling direction. Consequently, the optical property in this region differs from that in the surroundings, resulting in surface defects.

Simulation on deposition and solidification processes of 7075 Al alloy droplets in 3D printing technology

In order to study the successive deposition and solidification processes of uniform alloy droplets during the drop-on-demand three dimensional（3D） printing method,based on the volume of fluid（VOF） method,a 3D numerical model was employed.In this model,the 7075 alloy with larger temperature range for phase change was used.The simulation results show that the successive deposition and solidification processes of uniform 7075 alloy droplets can be well characterized by this model.Simulated droplets shapes agree well with SEM images under the same condition.The effects of deposition and solidification of droplets result in vertical and L-shaped ridges on the surface of droplets,and tips of dendrites appear near the overlap of droplets due to rapid solidification.

3D FEM simulation of flow velocity field for 5052 aluminum alloy multi-row sprocket in cold semi-precision forging process

Based on the design of the multi-row sprocket with a new tooth profile,a cold semi-precision forging process for manufacturing 5052 aluminum alloy multi-row sprocket was presented.Through simulating the forging process of 5052 aluminum alloy sprocket billet with 3D rigid-viscoplastic FEM,both the distributions of flow velocity field in axial(U_Z),radial(U_R) and circumferential(U_θ) directions and the curves of velocity component in different deformation regions were respectively obtained.By comparison and analysis of the velocity varying curves,the velocity component relation conditions for filling the die cavity were clarified.It shows that when the die cavity is almost fully filled,the circumferential velocity U_θ increases sharply,implying that U_θplays a key role in fully filling the die cavity.

Grain refinement mechanism of as-cast aluminum by hafnium

The effect of Hf on the grain refinement of as-cast aluminum was investigated using optical microscopy, electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction. The result shows that the grain size of studied alloy decreases effectively with the addition of Hf,Hf can react with Al to form Al3Hf particles during the solidification, the primary Al3Hf particles are highly potent nucleants for Al and the nanoscale coherent Al3Hf particles can inhibit the grain growth by pinning effect. The grain refinement mechanism of studied alloys was verified by the solute theory and the crystallography study, and it can be divided into two distinct types: At low Hf contents, there are no primary Al3Hf phases to form, the acquired grain refinement is primarily attributed to the constitutional undercooling induced by the Hf solute. At medium and high Hf contents, both Hf solute and Al3Hf particles contribute to the refinement.

Investigation on the Mechanical Properties and Shape Memory Effect of Landing Buffer Structure Based on NiTi Alloy Printing

With the deepening of human research on deep space exploration,our research on the soft landing methods of landers has gradually deepened.Adding a buffer and energy-absorbing structure to the leg structure of the lander has become an effective design solution.Based on the energy-absorbing structure of the leg of the interstellar lander,this paper studies the appearance characteristics of the predatory feet of the Odontodactylus scyllarus.The predatory feet of the Odontodactylus scyllarus can not only hit the prey highly when preying,but also can easily withstand the huge counter-impact force.The predatory feet structure of the Odontodactylus scyllarus,like a symmetrical cone,shows excellent rigidity and energy absorption capacity.Inspired by this discovery,we used SLM technology to design and manufacture two nickel-titanium samples,which respectively show high elasticity,shape memory,and get better energy absorption capacity.This research provides an effective way to design and manufacture high-mechanical energy-absorbing buffer structures using bionic 3D printing technology and nickel-titanium alloys.

3D打印铸造铝合金表面楔形织构的摩擦性能

实验对活塞-缸套使用较多材料铸造铝合金(AlSi10Mg)进行3D打印,研究其摩擦磨损性能。在内燃机实际运行条件下活塞裙部通常会发生严重的摩擦和磨损。表面织构已成为现代减摩抗磨的有效方式之一,并成功应用于许多领域。利用3D打印技术加工出两种不同面积占有率楔形凹坑表面试样与光滑表面试样。在立式万能摩擦磨损试验机上进行销-盘回转实验,采用三维形貌仪、同轴显微镜以及扫描电子显微镜观察试样工作表面的磨损形貌。通过Fluent流体分析软件模拟仿真润滑油内部压力,并对仿真结果进行验证。研究结果表明,与光滑无织构试样对比,楔形织构试样对提升活塞裙部摩擦学性能起着积极的作用,且当织构面积占有率为7.01%时对减少摩擦系数降低磨损质量的效果更加显著,提升了活塞裙部的摩擦学性能。

Intelligent casting:Empowering the future foundry industry

Emerging technological advances are reshaping the casting sector in latest decades.Casting technology is evolving towards intelligent casting paradigm that involves automation,greenization and intelligentization,which attracts more and more attention from the academic and industry communities.In this paper,the main features of casting technology were briefly summarized and forecasted,and the recent developments of key technologies and the innovative efforts made in promoting intelligent casting process were discussed.Moreover,the technical visions of intelligent casting process were also put forward.The key technologies for intelligent casting process comprise 3D printing technologies,intelligent mold technologies and intelligent process control technologies.In future,the intelligent mold that derived from mold with sensors,control devices and actuators will probably incorporate the Internet of Things,online inspection,embedded simulation,decision-making and control system,and other technologies to form intelligent cyber-physical casting system,which may pave the way to realize intelligent casting.It is promising that the intelligent casting process will eventually achieve the goal of real-time process optimization and full-scale control,with the defects,microstructure,performance,and service life of the fabricated castings can be accurately predicted and tailored.

3D printed aluminum matrix composites with well-defined ordered structures of shear-induced aligned carbon fibers

Carbon fiber reinforced aluminum composites with ordered architectures of shear-induced aligned carbon fibers were fabricated by 3D printing.The microstructures of the printed and sintered samples and mechanical properties of the composites were investigated.Carbon fibers and aluminum powder were bonded together with resin.The spatial arrangement of the carbon fibers was fixed in the aluminum matrix by shear-induced alignment in the3D printing process.As a result,the elongation of the composites with a parallel arrangement of aligned fibers and the impact toughness of the composites with an orthogonal arrangement were 0.82%and 0.41 J/cm^(2),respectively,about 0.4 and 0.8 times higher than that of the random arrangement.

Effect of minor Sc and Zr addition on microstructure and properties of ultra-high strength aluminum alloy

The Al-9Zn-2.8Mg-2.5Cu-xZr-ySc alloys （x=0, 0.15%, 0.15%; y=0, 0.05%, 0.15%）, produced by low-frequent electromagnetic casting technology, were subjected to homogenization treatment, hot extrusion, solution and aging treatment. The effects of minor Sc and Zr addition on microstructure, recrystallization and properties of alloys were studied by optical microscopy （OM）, scanning electron microscopy （SEM） and transmission electron microscopy （TEM）. The results show that Sc and Zr addition can refine grains of the as-cast alloy by precipitation of primary Al3（Sc,Zr） particles formed during solidification as heterogeneous nuclei. Secondary Al3（Sc,Zr） precipitates formed during homogenization treatment strongly pin the movement of dislocation and subgrain boundaries, which can effectively inhibit the alloys recrystallization. Compared with the alloy without Sc and Zr addition, the Al-Zn-Mg-Cu-Zr alloy with 0.05%Sc and 0.15%Zr shows the increase in tensile strength and yield strength by 172 MPa and 218 MPa, respectively. Strengthening comes from the contributions of precipitation, substructure and grain refining.

Simulation of low proportion of dynamic recrystallization in 7055 aluminum alloy

The hot deformation and dynamic recrystallization(DRX)behaviors of 7055 aluminum alloy were studied at temperatures of 390−470℃ and strain rates of 0.01−1 s^(−1).A low DRX fraction between 1% and 13% was observed by using EBSD technique.A modified JMAK-type DRX model was proposed for such low DRX fraction problems.The model was used together with commercial FEM software DEFORM-3D to simulate the hot compression of 7055 aluminum alloy.There was a good agreement between experimental and predicted DRX fractions and grain size with an average absolute relative error(AARE)of 13.7% and 6.3%,respectively.In order to further verify the validity of the proposed model,the model was also used to simulate DRX in industrial hot rolling of 7055 aluminum alloys.The results showed that the distribution of DRX fraction was inhomogeneous,and agreed with experimental observations.

Semi-continuous casting of magnesium alloy AZ91 using a filtered melt delivery system

A 3-D numerical simulation of an industrial-sized slab caster for magnesium alloy AZ91 has been carried out for the steady state operational phase of the caster.The simulated model consists of an open-top melt delivery system fitted with a porous filter near the hot-top.The melt flow through the porous filter was modeled on the basis of Brinkmann-Forchimier-Extended non-Darcy model for turbulent flow.An in-house 3-D CFD code was modified to account for the melt flow through the porous filter.Results are obtained for four casting speeds namely,40,60,80,and 100 mm/min.The metal-mold contact region as well as the convective heat transfer coefficient at the mold wall were also varied.In addition to the above,the Darcy number for the porous media was also changed.All parametric studies were performed for a fixed inlet melt superheat of 64℃.The results are presented pictorially in the form of temperature and velocity fields.The sump depth,mushy region thickness,solid shell thickness at the exit of the mold and axial temperature profiles are also presented and correlated with the casting speed through regression analysis.©2015 Production and hosting by Elsevier B.V.on behalf of Chongqing University.

In vivo analysis of post-joint-preserving surgery fracture of 3D-printed Ti-6Al-4V implant to treat bone cancer

Cancer growth in the bone due to its random shape disables bone strength and thus changes its capacity to support body weight or muscles,which can crucially affect the quality of human life in terms of normal walking or daily activities.For successful patient recovery,it is necessary to remove the cancer-affected minimal bone area and quickly replace it with a biocompatible metal implant within less than 2 weeks.An electron beam-melted Ti-6Al-4V implant was designed and applied in a patient to preserve the natural knee joint close to the bone tumor.The developed implant fits the bone defect well,and the independent ambulatory function of the natural knee joint was restored in the patient within six weeks after surgery.A delayed fracture occurred six months after the successful replacement of cancer-affected bone with Ti-6Al-4V implant at the proximal meshed junction of the implant because of a minor downward slip.Microstructural,mechanical,and computational analyses were conducted for the fractured area to find the main reason for the delayed fracture.Our findings pertaining to the mechanical and material investigation can help realize the safe implantation of the three-dimensionally printed titanium implant to preserve the natural joints of patients with massive bone defects of the extremities.

Additive manufacturing of biodegradable magnesium-based materials:Design strategies,properties,and biomedical applications

Magnesium(Mg)-based materials are a new generation of alloys with the exclusive ability to be biodegradable within the human/animal body.In addition to biodegradability,their inherent biocompatibility and similar-to-bone density make Mg-based alloys good candidates for fabricating surgical bioimplants for use in orthopedic and traumatology treatments.To this end,nowadays additive manufacturing(AM)along with three-dimensional(3D)printing represents a promising manufacturing technique as it allows for the integration of bioimplant design and manufacturing processes specific to given applications.Meanwhile,this technique also faces many new challenges associated with the properties of Mg-based alloys,including high chemical reactivity,potential for combustion,and low vaporization temperature.In this review article,various AM processes to fabricate biomedical implants from Mg-based alloys,along with their metallic microstructure,mechanical properties,biodegradability,biocompatibility,and antibacterial properties,as well as various post-AM treatments were critically reviewed.Also,the challenges and issues involved in AM processes from the perspectives of bioimplant design,properties,and applications were identified;the possibilities and potential scope of the Mg-based scaffolds/implants are discussed and highlighted.

3D打印铝合金材料的摩擦学性能

为测试高速传动件上3D打印铝合金材料的耐磨性能,对3D打印铝合金(EOS:Al Si10Mg)与铸造铝合金(ZL1104T6:ZAl Si9Mg)进行性能对比测试。采用光学显微镜、电子扫描电镜、能谱分析仪、显微硬度计、高温摩擦磨损试验机等对两种材料进行微观组织分析,硬度测量,摩擦磨损值测定。结果表明,3D打印铝合金其微观组织下晶粒更精细,并且各合金元素分布均匀性更好;3D打印铝合金硬度平均值略高于ZL1104 T6;3D打印铝合金的摩擦因数曲线更平滑,摩擦因数平均值及磨损失重率均小于ZL1104 T6,证明在相同的摩擦磨损条件下,3D打印铝合金表现出良好的耐磨性。

3D打印钴铬合金应用于可摘局部义齿支架制作的机械性能评价

目的评价3D打印钴铬合金应用于可摘局部义齿支架制作的机械性能。方法制备3 D打印钴铬合金试样,测试合金的机械性能和显微维氏硬度,观察拉伸试样的断口形貌。结果 3 D打印钴铬合金抗拉强度为(997±14 MPa),屈服强度为(996.7±16.8 MPa),延伸率为(20.86±1.5%),维氏硬度为(345±3.9 HV);合金断口呈典型的韧性断裂特征。结论 3 D打印钴铬合金机械性能满足口腔可摘局部义齿支架制作的要求。

3D打印砂型铸造Al-7Si-0.4Mg合金的组织和力学性能

利用ProCAST软件对不同壁厚(5~30 mm)阶梯件的充型和凝固过程进行模拟,结合模拟结果进行浇注实验,重点研究壁厚对3D打印砂型铸造Al-7Si-0.4Mg合金的微观组织和力学性能的影响。结果表明:随着壁厚减小,合金中α(Al)的二次枝晶臂间距、共晶硅尺寸以及含Fe相的尺寸均减小;而合金的致密度和拉伸力学性能显著升高。T6态下,合金的最高(壁厚5 mm)抗拉强度为279 MPa,断后伸长率为2.13%。随着壁厚减小,合金的凝固冷却速度增加,组织得到细化,致密度提高,合金的强度和伸长率提高。此外,3D打印砂型铸造的铝合金性能受到砂模粘结剂含量的制约,断后伸长率较低。