Selective laser sintering

About: Selective laser sintering is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 5440 publications have been published within this topic receiving 115405 citations. The topic is also known as: SLS.

Laser additive manufacturing of metallic components: materials, processes and mechanisms

Abstract: Unlike conventional materials removal methods, additive manufacturing (AM) is based on a novel materials incremental manufacturing philosophy. Additive manufacturing implies layer by layer shaping and consolidation of powder feedstock to arbitrary configurations, normally using a computer controlled laser. The current development focus of AM is to produce complex shaped functional metallic components, including metals, alloys and metal matrix composites (MMCs), to meet demanding requirements from aerospace, defence, automotive and biomedical industries. Laser sintering (LS), laser melting (LM) and laser metal deposition (LMD) are presently regarded as the three most versatile AM processes. Laser based AM processes generally have a complex non-equilibrium physical and chemical metallurgical nature, which is material and process dependent. The influence of material characteristics and processing conditions on metallurgical mechanisms and resultant microstructural and mechanical properties of AM proc...

3D printing of polymer matrix composites: A review and prospective

Abstract: The use of 3D printing for rapid tooling and manufacturing has promised to produce components with complex geometries according to computer designs. Due to the intrinsically limited mechanical properties and functionalities of printed pure polymer parts, there is a critical need to develop printable polymer composites with high performance. 3D printing offers many advantages in the fabrication of composites, including high precision, cost effective and customized geometry. This article gives an overview on 3D printing techniques of polymer composite materials and the properties and performance of 3D printed composite parts as well as their potential applications in the fields of biomedical, electronics and aerospace engineering. Common 3D printing techniques such as fused deposition modeling, selective laser sintering, inkjet 3D printing, stereolithography, and 3D plotting are introduced. The formation methodology and the performance of particle-, fiber- and nanomaterial-reinforced polymer composites are emphasized. Finally, important limitations are identified to motivate the future research of 3D printing.

Review of selective laser melting : materials and applications

Abstract: Selective Laser Melting (SLM) is a particular rapid prototyping, 3D printing, or Additive Manufacturing (AM) technique designed to use high power-density laser to melt and fuse metallic powders. A component is built by selectively melting and fusing powders within and between layers. The SLM technique is also commonly known as direct selective laser sintering, LaserCusing, and direct metal laser sintering, and this technique has been proven to produce near net-shape parts up to 99.9% relative density. This enables the process to build near full density functional parts and has viable economic benefits. Recent developments of fibre optics and high-power laser have also enabled SLM to process different metallic materials, such as copper, aluminium, and tungsten. Similarly, this has also opened up research opportunities in SLM of ceramic and composite materials. The review presents the SLM process and some of the common physical phenomena associated with this AM technology. It then focuses on the following a...

Residual stresses in selective laser sintering and selective laser melting

Abstract: Purpose – This paper presents an investigation into residual stresses in selective laser sintering (SLS) and selective laser melting (SLM), aiming at a better understanding of this phenomenon.Design/methodology/approach – First, the origin of residual stresses is explored and a simple theoretical model is developed to predict residual stress distributions. Next, experimental methods are used to measure the residual stress profiles in a set of test samples produced with different process parameters.Findings – Residual stresses are found to be very large in SLM parts. In general, the residual stress profile consists of two zones of large tensile stresses at the top and bottom of the part, and a large zone of intermediate compressive stress in between. The most important parameters determining the magnitude and shape of the residual stress profiles are the material properties, the sample and substrate height, the laser scanning strategy and the heating conditions.Research limitations/implications – All exper...