Search results

Ultrasonic additive manufacturing (UAM) is a rapid prototyping process through which multiple thin layers of material are sequentially ultrasonically welded together to form a finished part. While previous research into the peak temperatures experienced during UAM have been documented, a thorough examination of the heating and cooling curves has not been conducted to date.

For this study, UAM weldments made from aluminum 3003‐H18 tapes with embedded Type‐K thermocouples were examined. Finite element modeling was used to compare the theoretical thermal diffusion rates during heating to the observed heating patterns. A model was used to calculate the effective thermal diffusivity of the UAM build on cooling based on the observed cooling curves and curve fitting analysis.

Embedded thermocouple data revealed simultaneous temperature increases throughout all interfaces of the UAM build directly beneath the sonotrode. Modeling of the heating curves revealed a delay of at least 0.5 seconds should have existed if heating of lower interfaces was a result of thermal diffusion alone. As this is not the case, it was concluded that ultrasonic energy is absorbed and converted to heat at every interface beneath the sonotrode. The calculated thermal diffusivity of the build on cooling was less than 1 percent of the reported values of bulk aluminum, suggesting that voids and oxides along interfaces throughout the build may be inhibiting thermal diffusion through thermal contact resistance across the interface.

This work systematically analyzed the thermal profiles that develop during the UAM process. The simultaneous heating phenomenon presented here has not been documented by other research programs. The findings presented here will enable future researchers to develop more accurate models of the UAM process, potentially leading to improved UAM bond quality.

The purpose of this paper is to introduce the multi-solution nature of topology optimization (TO) as a design tool for additive manufacturing (AM). The sensitivity of topologically optimized parts and manufacturing constraints to the initial starting point of the optimization process leading to structures with equivalent performance is explored.

A modified bi-directional evolutionary structural optimization (BESO) code was used as the numerical approach to optimize a cantilever beam problem and reduce the mass by 50 per cent. Several optimized structures with relatively equivalent mechanical performance were generated by changing the initial starting point of the TO algorithm. These optimized structures were manufactured using fused deposition modeling (FDM). The equivalence of strain distribution in FDM parts was tested with the digital image correlation (DIC) technique and compared with that from the modified BESO code.

The results confirm that TO could lead to a wide variety of non-unique solutions based on loading and manufacturability constraints. The modified BESO code was able to reduce the support structure needed to build the simple two-dimensional cantilever beam by 15 per cent while keeping the mechanical performance at the same level.

The originality of this paper lies in introduction and application of the multi-solution nature of TO for AM as a design tool for optimizing structures with minimized features in the overhang condition and the need for support structures.