TY - JOUR
T1 - Selective Deposition and Fusion of AISI 316L
T2 - An Additive Manufacturing Process for Space Environments via Direct Ink Writing and Laser Processing
AU - Hoffmann, Miguel
AU - Ye, Jiahui
AU - Elwany, Alaa
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
Copyright © 2025 by ASME.
PY - 2024/12/1
Y1 - 2024/12/1
N2 - Unlocking the potential of additive manufacturing (AM) for space exploration hinges on overcoming key challenges, notably the ability to manufacture or repair parts on-site during exploration missions with consideration of quality, feedstock utilization, and challenges involved in microgravity environments. While there are multiple efforts to investigate the use of existing metal AM processes such as powder bed fusion (PBF), directed energy deposition (DED), and filament-based material extrusion, each process comes with a different set of challenges in space environments. Here, we introduce a new AM method that integrates the benefits of direct ink writing (DIW) to selectively deposit metallic pastes with laser-based processing to locally debind and subsequently melt and fuse metal powder, layer by layer, enabling the manufacturing of AISI 316L samples with densities exceeding 99.0%. The impact of process parameters on single-track dimensions, surface morphology, and porosity was characterized. The efficacy of laser debinding was assessed via secondary-ion mass spectrometry, permitting the carbon content to be estimated at 0.0152%, which is safely below the acceptable limit (0.03 wt%) for AISI 316L.
AB - Unlocking the potential of additive manufacturing (AM) for space exploration hinges on overcoming key challenges, notably the ability to manufacture or repair parts on-site during exploration missions with consideration of quality, feedstock utilization, and challenges involved in microgravity environments. While there are multiple efforts to investigate the use of existing metal AM processes such as powder bed fusion (PBF), directed energy deposition (DED), and filament-based material extrusion, each process comes with a different set of challenges in space environments. Here, we introduce a new AM method that integrates the benefits of direct ink writing (DIW) to selectively deposit metallic pastes with laser-based processing to locally debind and subsequently melt and fuse metal powder, layer by layer, enabling the manufacturing of AISI 316L samples with densities exceeding 99.0%. The impact of process parameters on single-track dimensions, surface morphology, and porosity was characterized. The efficacy of laser debinding was assessed via secondary-ion mass spectrometry, permitting the carbon content to be estimated at 0.0152%, which is safely below the acceptable limit (0.03 wt%) for AISI 316L.
KW - hybrid additive manufacturing
KW - in-space additive manufacturing
KW - laser processing
KW - material extrusion
KW - process development
KW - stainless steel
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85215617860&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1115/1.4067144
DO - 10.1115/1.4067144
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85215617860
SN - 1087-1357
VL - 146
JO - Journal of Manufacturing Science and Engineering
JF - Journal of Manufacturing Science and Engineering
IS - 12
M1 - 121006
ER -