TRIMET Offers Alloy for 3D-Printing

The new material enables the expansion of additive manufacturing, particularly in the transport sector with its high demand for aluminium materials.Under the name trimal®-05AM, TRIMET now offers an aluminium alloy that the materials specialist has developed specially for the production of light metal parts in 3D-printing. The alloy, which is based on the material trimal®-05 developed by TRIMET, is suitable for AM processes that use Selective Laser Melting (SLM) for the production of ultra-high-strength serial parts without subsequent heat treatment.

“With the new alloy, we are expanding the application areas for aluminium. The transport sector alone increasingly relies on additive manufacturing, thereby raising the demand for materials that have been developed for this process”,  said Thomas Reuther, member of the Executive Board of TRIMET Aluminium SE. In 3D-printing, the alloy, cast as ingots, is atomized into powder. In the process, the material is liquefied and atomized under high pressure to form metal drops, which then solidify into spherical powder particles. Using SLM, the powder-based material is applied in layers to a base plate and completely remelted locally using laser radiation. After solidification, a solid material layer is brought about. This cycle is repeated until the component is produced completely. In contrast to conventional casting processes, SLM 3D-printing does not require any tools or molds. A further advantage is the high degree of geometrical freedom. For example, weight-optimized components with bionic structures can be produced comparatively inexpensively. After classic T6 heat treatment, the mechanical properties are comparable to those of cast components. This also allows trimal®-05AM to be used for prototype production. 

Service

Phone: +49 7221 502 200


E-mail: info@goeller-verlag.de