On  September 3, after more than 200 hours of intense work in 12 days,  Professor Li Zhenhua of the Kunming University of Science and Technology  Additive Manufacturing Center successfully tested and formed titanium  alloy complex parts with dimensions of 250×250×257mm. The  total number of parts and supports exceeds 21Kg, which is close to the  limit of the forming space of the equipment. It is the largest single  titanium alloy complex part formed by the SLM method which has been  reported so far.

SLM  (Selective Laser Melting) is a kind of metal 3D printing method. It  uses laser as a heat source to scan the paved metal powder according to  the shape data of the discrete parts of the part, so that the metal  powder is melted and accumulated point by point. Metal parts are manufactured directly. The  metal parts formed by this method have excellent mechanical properties,  high surface quality and dimensional accuracy, and are hot research  topics in the field of metal 3D printing.

Titanium  alloy has excellent mechanical properties and corrosion resistance, and  is widely used in aerospace, chemical, medical and other fields. Metal  laser 3D printing process will produce high residual stress. The  problem of stress deformation and cracking during the formation of  complex structural parts has always been the biggest challenge for metal  3D printing. These problems are more prominent in titanium alloy laser  3D printing. Professor  Li Zhenhua and his collaborators have completed a large number of  preliminary work on powder and composition control, component structure  and position optimization, support design and stress release, remote  monitoring, etc., and finally determined the test plan, successfully  completed by most researchers. Printing of large, complex titanium parts that are considered impossible to print successfully.

Kunming  University of Science and Technology Additive Manufacturing Center is a  teaching and research platform based on the rapid prototyping  laboratory of the original engineering training center. At  present, there are more than 5,700 undergraduate students who have  entered the center to study and carry out innovative activities every  year. More than 50 professional and technical personnel and doctoral and  master students are engaged in research, and have made great progress  in 3D printing research in the fields of aerospace, medical, and mold. .

The  center currently has more than 10 advanced 3D printing equipments such  as laser selective melting (SLM), laser selective sintering (SLS),  electron beam selective melting (SEBM), fused deposition (FDM), and  layered physical manufacturing (LOM). The most comprehensive equipment in the region, the most innovative and innovative additive manufacturing center.

Previously,  the largest SLM 3D printed titanium alloy parts have been reported,  which is a cylindrical part completed by SLM Solutions of Germany for 6  days and a half.