What could we 3d print
Additive manufacturing (AM) or additive layer manufacturing (ALM) is the industrial production name for 3D printing, a computer-controlled process that creates three-dimensional objects by depositing materials, usually in layers.
But what could our advanced machines can print in 2022?. That's what I wanna answer I hope at least.
Additive Manufacturing Processes:
There is a number of distinct AM processes with their own standards, which include:
- Binder Jetting
This technique uses a 3d printing like head moving on x, y, and z axes to deposit alternating layers of powdered material and a liquid binder as an adhesive.
- Directed Energy Deposition
Direct energy deposition additive manufacturing can be used with a wide variety of materials including ceramics, metals, and polymers. A laser, electric arc or an electron beam gun mounted on an arm moves horizontally melting wire, filament feedstock, or powder to build up material as a bed moves vertically.
- Material Extrusion
This standard AM process uses spooled polymers, either extruded or drawn through a heated nozzle mounted on a movable arm. This builds melted material layer by layer as the nozzle moves horizontally and the bed moves vertically. The layers adhere through temperature control or chemical bonding agents.
- Powder Bed Fusion
Powder bed fusion encompasses a variety of AM techniques including direct metal laser melting (DMLM), direct metal laser sintering (DMLS), electron beam melting (EBM), selective laser sintering (SLS), and selective heat sintering (SHS). Electron beams, lasers, or thermal print heads are used to melt or partially melt fine layers of material after which excess powder is blasted away.
- Sheet Lamination
Sheet lamination can be split into two technologies; laminated object manufacturing (LOM) and ultrasonic additive manufacturing (UAM). Laminated object manufacturing is suited to creating items with visual or aesthetic appeal and uses alternate layers of paper and adhesive. UAM uses ultrasonic welding to join thin metal sheets; a low-energy, low-temperature process, UAM can be used with various metals such as aluminum, stainless steel, and titanium. 6. Vat Polymerisation
This process uses a vat of liquid resin photopolymer to create an object layer by layer. Mirrors are used to direct ultraviolet light which cures the successive layers of resin through photopolymerization.
- Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing (Now known as Directed Energy Deposition-Arc Wire arc additive manufacturing uses arc welding power sources and manipulators to build 3D shapes through arc deposition. This process commonly uses wire as a material source and follows a predetermined path to create the desired shape. This method of additive manufacture is usually performed using robotic welding equipment.
Could we make a space rocket:
There are a few startups that want and probably will 3d print a space vehicle. One of them is relativity space. They claim their rocket is made of in less than 1000 parts which is not a lot compared with the Saturn v which is contained more than 3 million parts and we just used to land on the moon.
If I understand correctly They use upgraded welding robots to print metal. They could create as they claim a "software-defined" factory which is could work with 100% automatization I think.
Could we create an ice engine :
We can easily 3d print a working engine model. We can probably 3d print an engine but not sure if tats will survive the firing up of the engine without long post-processing.
Actually Ferrari f1 team used a 3d printed 3ngine component to achieve better performance. They 3d printed the pistons head. They claim they achieve higher lifespan and performance with the help of a complex cooling channel which was achievable with 3d printing.
So based on that probably we could 3d print an actual engine block with most of its components.
Could and should we print car parts:
Some manufacturers have also started implementing 3D printed components in their production cars. One good example is BMW, which fitted 3D printed roof brackets as a part of a roof retracting mechanism on an i8 Roadster.
More design freedom results in more efficient structures, which can either save weight or improve airflow and therefore increase performance. Swedish hypercar manufacturer Koenigsegg has used 3D printing for creating a variable turbo housing, extracting even higher performance figures. They’ve also 3D printed an exhaust tip in titanium, which saves weight.
However, 3D printing of car parts goes beyond the mainstream industry, reaching hobbyists and individuals who use it for making modifications to their vehicles as well as printing spare parts. In short, what started as an experiment for massive corporations has slowly become available even for hobbyists to play with. Lost a hub cap? These days you can print one at home.
Big companies have used efficiently 3d printing but hobbist at home don't have access to advanced enough machines but other smaller companies have access to machines like markforged metal x system and their uses the system to print old classic car parts which are not available in today's world and cheaper to manufacture one at a time.
For example tecron :
They were asked to manufacture a carburetor for a classic race car.
Creating toolpaths to CNC mill an exact replica would have been time-consuming, especially for a low-volume part. Maybe for a larger production run it would have been an easier decision: more parts sold means less cost per part.
But that wasn’t the case, so Tecron turned to a Markforged metal system to complete the work.
Armed with the original specs, they reproduced the part in a “cloud-based design platform” (OnShape, by the looks of it from the image above) they not only reproduced it but managed to reduce the original theoretical part cost by ⅓, simply by applying DfAM principles. Spot the difference in the two side-by-side images above. The one on the left is the original, and the one on the right is the DfAM’d version. Note there are some features absent in the right-hand image. Absent because they were redundant!
In the image below, you can see three versions of the carburetor. The one on the far left is the original part. The middle one is the exact 3D printed copy. And the one on the right is the one optimized for 3D printing.
The carburetor was printed with Markforge’s 17-4 PH stainless steel material, which the company claims is 95% of the strength of the wrought equivalent at the same levels of heat treatment.
And of course, the finished item is machinable so as to create those smooth mating faces needed for bolting the carburetor to the manifold.
Did the printed carburetor work? Well, I assume it did. It made it into the report without an obituary attached, so I guess it’s all good!
Could we print infrastructures:
Well, we can 3d print roads or at least we can easily repair them. Dubai planning to use drones with asphalt 3d printing heads on them to repair their roads.
And also we can 3d print bridges too.
Mx3d is a dutch company and their 3d printed and designed a "bridge" over a canal. It's not the golden gate bridge but it's something. They used waam technic to print it.
As it turned out we can basically could print everything if we have a good machine, and not just out of plastic.