Periodic Reporting for period 1 - ZETAMIX (ZETAMIX, the first Desktop Ceramic 3D printer on the market)
Período documentado: 2019-06-01 hasta 2019-11-30
If technical ceramics make further inroads into the marketplace with new applications, the general perception in the industry is that machining costs are too high, as the production process requires a specific component shape and size for application.
This is without doubts a major constraint to the massive adoption of advanced ceramic in the industry. In this context, 3 dimensions (3D) printing or additive manufacturing (AM) technologies appear as a solution to decrease costs of technical ceramics’ production, in particular for small series.
ZETAMIX project aimed at developing a range of ready-to-use ceramic filaments that can be used with common desktops FDM 3D printers. ZETAMIX allows to print quicker, for an affordable price, and to combine several materials. Key benefits of ZETAMIX innovative method for 3D printing of ceramics also include a complete freedom of shape, soluble and detachable support and a density superior to 99% with homogeneous microstructure obtained after debinding and sintering.
The SME Instrument Phase 1 Feasibility study was fully conclusive and decisive for the future of Nanoe, as all technical and business initial objectives were met. Perspectives were identified, that will allow Nanoe to accelerate its development.
This is without doubts a major constraint to the massive adoption of advanced ceramic in the industry. In this context, 3 dimensions (3D) printing or additive manufacturing (AM) technologies appear as a solution to decrease costs of technical ceramics’ production, in particular for small series.
ZETAMIX project aimed at developing a range of ready-to-use ceramic filaments that can be used with common desktops FDM 3D printers. ZETAMIX allows to print quicker, for an affordable price, and to combine several materials. Key benefits of ZETAMIX innovative method for 3D printing of ceramics also include a complete freedom of shape, soluble and detachable support and a density superior to 99% with homogeneous microstructure obtained after debinding and sintering.
The SME Instrument Phase 1 Feasibility study was fully conclusive and decisive for the future of Nanoe, as all technical and business initial objectives were met. Perspectives were identified, that will allow Nanoe to accelerate its development.
The feasibility study aimed to develop filaments for fused deposition modeling (FDM) 3D printing technology of ceramic and metal parts. The main technological challenges were first to find the right binding formulation to maintain sufficient flexibility and good tolerance to mechanical stress despite a volumetric load higher than 50%. The second challenge was to find the right settings for 3D printing and de-binding parts.
Some major technological improvement has been done during this Feasibility Study, in particular regarding post-processing, scrap reduction and parts’ quality and precision, and facility of use.