Additive and Hybrid Manufacturing

Group

Additive manufacturing has a high innovation potential for ceramic products in terms of design and the possibility of producing novel composite materials.
© Fraunhofer IKTS
Additive manufacturing has a high innovation potential for ceramic products in terms of design and the possibility of producing novel composite materials.
Heating element made by additive manufacturing with printed conductive trace.
© Fraunhofer IKTS
Heating element made by additive manufacturing with printed conductive trace.
The material and technology combinations presented pave the way for applications in electronics and power electronics as well as sensor and energy technology.
© Fraunhofer IKTS
The material and technology combinations presented pave the way for applications in electronics and power electronics as well as sensor and energy technology.

Advanced ceramics have combinations of properties that other classes of materials cannot achieve. They are characterized by very high thermal, chemical and mechanical resistance and usually also have a lower density than metals. However, these outstanding properties also make it difficult to process the components and thus to realize complex component geometries.

By adapting additive manufacturing processes for ceramic materials (CerAM), ceramic components can be complexly shaped, further functionalized and miniaturized – as is common for other classes of materials. As a result, highly complex ceramic components can be produced economically, with post-processing reduced or even eliminated. Additively manufactured ceramics are now, for the first time, a real alternative to components made of polymers and metals, especially for applications in harsh environments.

In addition to ceramics, Fraunhofer IKTS also processes other materials with the same process chain, e.g. hardmetals and cermets, powder metals, glasses as well as composites from different material classes.

 

Production of components from several materials (hybridization)

The functionalities of additively manufactured ceramic components can be further enhanced by integrating additional materials. This can be achieved by applying functional materials to the component surfaces or introducing them directly into the component during the molding process while maintaining a high level of structural integrity. Here we pursue two different manufacturing strategies: On the one hand, the different materials are combined during the forming process, i.e. before the heat treatment process (simultaneous manufacturing), and on the other hand, the additional materials are applied only after the thermal treatment of the first material (sequential manufacturing). This allows the following combinations of properties and exemplary applications to be realized:

  • Tight and porous: catalytic support structures, filters
  • Conductive and insulating: integration of electrically conductive tracks, sensors (e.g. thermocouples) or actuators (e.g. electric heaters)
  • Combination of different colors

Current research

Geometrically highly complex ceramic sensor systems (sensor triad)

Current research

Ceramic Tesla valve

Current research

CerAMfacturing: electrically conductive and insulating Si3N4-SiC-MoSi2 multi-material parts

Current research

Ceramic reactor for more eco-friendly satellite propulsion systems

Topic

Fused Filament Fabrication (CerAM FFF)

Topic

Binder Jetting (CerAM BJT)

Topic

Laser Powder Bed Fusion (CerAM L-PBF)

Topic

Vat Photopolymerization (CerAM VPP)

Topic

Multi Material Jetting (CerAM MMJ)

Topic

Hybridization of materials

Topic

Hybridization of molding processes