LARGE-SCALE METAL ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING OF LOW-COST FEEDSTOCK

Abstract: a system and method of making an additively manufactured, metal near net shape part includes introducing a metallic-element-bearing feedstock into a melt zone of an additive manufacturing printhead. the metallic-element-bearing feedstock is mixed in the melt zone with a flux composition to form a slag bath mixture upon melting. the metallic-element-bearing feedstock is refined in-situ by melting the slag bath mixture with the application of thermal energy to the slag bath mixture to form a phase-separated product including a slag phase and a metal-rich liquid phase. the metal-rich liquid phase is simultaneously deposited to form a first metal layer that is one of a plurality of iteratively deposited metal layers of an additive build according to a three-dimensional digital model. the additive build has successive layers of the deposited, solidified metal-rich liquid that form a near net shape metallic part.

Inventor(s): Adam Stevens, Sudarsanam Suresh Babu, Rangasayee Kannan, Vanshika Singh, Peeyush Nandwana, Brian Hicks, Ryan R. Dehoff, David A. Frederick, Sarah M. Graham, Douglas J. Kyle, Lonnie J. Love, Roger G. Miller, William H. Peter, Brian K. Post, Yukinori Yamamoto

CPC Classification: B22F10/22 (WORKING METALLIC POWDER; MANUFACTURE OF ARTICLES FROM METALLIC POWDER; MAKING METALLIC POWDER (making alloys by powder metallurgy ); APPARATUS OR DEVICES SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR METALLIC POWDER)

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