Additive Manufacturing / 3D Printing – Customized prototypes and small series production

Modern additive manufacturing methods allow the rapid and cost-efficient production of customized components or prototypes even in small amounts. This is particularly interesting for the realization of novel designs and construction ideas for components made of hybrid polymers, ceramics, metal-ceramics or metal. The 3D printers at the Fraunhofer ISC are suitable for the processing of polymers and hybrid polymers and for component sizes of up to 40x70x100 mm, for powderbed processing of ceramics and metals a construction space of 400x250x250 mm (x, y, z) is available.

 

Current R&D priorities

• Design and manufacturing of ceramic, metal-ceramic and inorganic-organic hybrid polymer (ORMOCER^®)-based components
• Demonstrators, prototypes, personalized patient-specific or small batch products for biomedical applications

 

Our competencies

• Slurry and powder based ceramic precursors
• Biocompatible, biodegradable and monomer-free hybrid polymers for medical and biotechnological applications
• Adaptation of materials to target applications
• Powderbed or slurry based manufacturing of ceramics
• Digital light processing (DLP) for hybrid polymer compound manufacturing
• Infiltration methods to manufacture metal-ceramic composites or components
• Materials analysis and materials testing
  
• Component characterization
• Process analysis, special heat treatment processes (sintering, infiltration)

 

Our services to customers

• Prototyping and small batch production from (hybrid) polymers, composites, ceramics, metals or metal-ceramic composites by 3D printing
• CAD design of .stl-files
• Testing of .stl-files
• Design of components by FE behavior analysis
  
• Debinding and sintering of 3D printing components
• Melt infiltration of preforms
• Characterization of components
• Optimization of heat treatment processes
• Optimization of slurries for stereolithography
• Powder optimization for powderbed processing
• Patient-specific and small-batch production (e.g. personalized medical products)
  

 

Further information

• Please visit the website of our Fraunhofer Center for High Temperature Materials and Design HTL to read more about additive manufacturing of ceramics.

Expert information

• Find out more about 3D printing for medical and biotechnological applications: Additive manufacturing with ORMOCER®
• Multifunctional 3D-Printing and Bioprinting with functional Materials