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Development and experimental study of an automated laser-foil-printing additive manufacturing system

Chia-Hung Hung (Department of Mechanical Engineering, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan, Taiwan)
Tunay Turk (Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Missouri University of Science and Technology, Rolla, Missouri, USA)
M. Hossein Sehhat (Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Missouri University of Science and Technology, Rolla, Missouri, USA)
Ming C. Leu (Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Missouri University of Science and Technology, Rolla, Missouri, USA)

Rapid Prototyping Journal

ISSN: 1355-2546

Article publication date: 12 January 2022

Issue publication date: 23 May 2022

207

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to present the development and experimental study of a fully automated system using a novel laser additive manufacturing technology called laser foil printing (LFP), to fabricate metal parts layer by layer. The mechanical properties of parts fabricated with this novel system are compared with those of comparable methodologies to emphasize the suitability of this process.

Design/methodology/approach

Test specimens and parts with different geometries were fabricated from 304L stainless steel foil using an automated LFP system. The dimensions of the fabricated parts were measured, and the mechanical properties of the test specimens were characterized in terms of mechanical strength and elongation.

Findings

The properties of parts fabricated with the automated LFP system were compared with those of parts fabricated with the powder bed fusion additive manufacturing methods. The mechanical strength is higher than those of parts fabricated by the laser powder bed fusion and directed energy deposition technologies.

Originality/value

To the best knowledge of authors, this is the first time a fully automated LFP system has been developed and the properties of its fabricated parts were compared with other additive manufacturing methods for evaluation.

Keywords

Acknowledgements

Funding: This research work was supported by the Department of Energy (Grant number DE-FE0012272) and by the Intelligent Systems Center at the Missouri University of Science and Technology.

Citation

Hung, C.-H., Turk, T., Sehhat, M.H. and Leu, M.C. (2022), "Development and experimental study of an automated laser-foil-printing additive manufacturing system", Rapid Prototyping Journal, Vol. 28 No. 6, pp. 1013-1022. https://doi.org/10.1108/RPJ-10-2021-0269

Publisher

:

Emerald Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2020, Emerald Publishing Limited

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