Optimizing the process parameters for additive manufacturing of glass components by selective laser melting: Soda-lime glass versus quartz glass

Additive manufacturing by selective laser melting (SLM) is generally applicable to glasses while insufficient resistance of the material to thermal shocks due to local laser heating may result in cracking and a high viscosity of glass melt is responsible for incomplete powder consolidation related to residual porosity. The present work shows that preheating up to 350 °C is sufficient to avoid cracking of soda-lime glass. Preheating of quartz glass up to 730 °C considerably decreases the residual porosity, which is explained by acceleration of powder consolidation by the viscous-flow mechanism of glass particles' coalescence. Variation of the preheating temperature is an effective tool to control consolidation of glass powder and to avoid cracking.

Features of Obtaining Multicomponent Magnetron Targets for the Formation of Non-Porous Transformation-Hardenable Coatings of a Given Composition

The technological process of thin-film sputtering significantly depends on the quality of the target for magnetron sputtering. This paper presents the features of obtaining the multicomponent magnetron target for the formation of non-porous transformation-hardenable coatings by the method of impact electric pulse consolidation. Special considerartion is given to the blend preparation and technological parameters of compaction. Blend powder consolidation under impact electric pulse compaction at different speeds of the striker has been investigated. At high speeds of the drop-hammer striker, the time parameters of the dynamic impact and electric pulse heating of the powder billet are shown to superpose, which leads to the final consolidation of the ceramic blend of the target for magnetron sputtering. The use of the technology of impact electric pulse compaction has made it possible to obtain multicomponent magnetron targets for formation of non-porous transformation-hardenable coatings of a given composition.

Feasibility of Cobalt-Free Nanostructured WC Cutting Inserts for Machining of a TiC/Fe Composite

The paper presents results of investigations on the binderless nanostructured tungsten carbide (WC) cutting tools fabrication and performance. The scientific novelty includes the description of some regularities of the powder consolidation under electric current and the subsequent possibility to utilize them for practical use in the fabrication of cutting tools. The sintering process of WC nanopowder was performed with the electroconsolidation method, which is a modification of spark plasma sintering (SPS). Its advantages include low temperatures and short sintering time which allows retaining nanosize grains of ca. 70 nm, close to the original particle size of the starting powder. In respect to the application of the cutting tools, pure WC nanostructure resulted in a smaller cutting edge radius providing a higher quality of TiC/Fe machined surface. In the range of cutting speeds, vc = 15–40 m/min the durability of the inserts was 75% of that achieved by cubic boron nitride ones, and more than two times better than that of WC-Co cutting tools. In additional tests of machining 13CrMo4 material at an elevated cutting speed of vc = 100 m/min, binderless nWC inserts worked almost three times longer than WC-Co composites.

Synthesis of Bulk Zr48Cu36Al8Ag8 Metallic Glass by Hot Pressing of Amorphous Powders

The critical cooling rate necessary for glass formation via melt solidification poses inherent constraints on sample size using conventional casting techniques. This drawback can be overcome by pressure-assisted sintering of metallic glass powders at temperatures above the glass transition, where the material shows viscous-flow behavior. Partial crystallization during sintering usually exacerbates the inherent brittleness of metallic glasses and thus needs to be avoided. In order to achieve high density of the bulk specimens while avoiding (or minimizing) crystallization, the optimal combination between low viscosity and long incubation time for crystallization must be identified. Here, by carefully selecting the time–temperature window for powder consolidation, we synthesized highly dense Zr48Cu36Ag8Al8 bulk metallic glass (BMG) with mechanical properties comparable with its cast counterpart. The larger ZrCu-based BMG specimens fabricated in this work could then be post-processed by flash-annealing, offering the possibility to fabricate monolithic metallic glasses and glass–matrix composites with enhanced room-temperature plastic deformation.

Modelling of Selective Laser Melting Process of Quartz Glass at Elevated Temperatures

Selective laser melting (SLM) to date is the method of additive manufacturing allowing fabricating products from powder layer-by-layer according to a 3D model. However, when applying this method to fragile materials, parts crack while fabricating due to high temperatures. Quartz glass is a promising material for fabricating products by SLM without cracks due to a low thermal expansion. However, quality of fabricated material differs from the fused cast ones. This article aims to test the method of SLM with preheating to improve the material quality. Experiments on single track formation in SLM are analysed by modelling the coupled processes of heat transfer and powder consolidation in the laser-interaction zone. The mathematical model is validated by the experiments. It is shown that the preheating can improve the material quality and increase the process productivity but overheating may result in undesirable crystallization.