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Aluminium alloy powders
Selecting atomised aluminium alloy powders for the metal Additive Manufacturing process As the metal Additive Manufacturing industry continues to grow at a rapid pace, aluminium and aluminium alloy powders are gaining ever more attention. Component and equipment manufacturers are deploying immense efforts in exploring advanced aluminium alloys in order to target more complex applications that demand higher mechanical performance. As they move forward, the selection and optimisation of powders is becoming increasingly important. In this article, Jessu Joys and colleagues from United States Metal Powders, Inc. (USMP), identify the most popular aluminium alloy grades for AM technology and discuss the unique properties of each powder.
Today a wide range of aluminium alloy powders are commercially available. However, only a small number of these are proving popular in industry, with the majority being based on cast alloys. As there are no established standards, these powder grades have been sub-categorised into several customised grades, predominantly based on particle size distribution with slight variations in chemistry. This article will review the particle size distribution, morphology, flow properties, oxide content and specific surface area of the most popular aluminium alloy grades for AM technology. It will also look at optimising particle size characteristics, a challenging task in AM due to the various processes that are used in the industry. Aluminium powder characteristics and properties of existing metal powder part manufacturing technologies, namely Powder Metallurgy (PM) and Metal Injection Moulding (MIM), will also be compared to AM technology.
Vol. 2 No. 3 ยฉ 2016 Inovar Communications Ltd
Metal powders used in the AM process In metal AM parts are typically produced from a feedstock in the form of powder or wire using a layer by layer process. Metal Additive Manufacturing is further classified into sub-categories such as Powder
Bed Fusion (SLM/SLS/DMLS, EBM etc), Direct Energy Deposition, Binder Jetting and Sheet Lamination. Both Powder Bed Fusion and the Direct Energy Deposition methods use metal powder grades with a particle size distribution ranging anywhere from 10 ยตm to around 150 ยตm. Laser-based Powder Bed Fusion processes are
Fig. 1 USMPโs Poudres Hermillon SARL aluminum powder plant in Hermillon, France
Metal Additive Manufacturing | Autumn/Fall 2016
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