3D Printing
News Videos Newsletter Contact us
Home / News / Printing Single Crystal Nickel with Lasers
revopoint

Printing Single Crystal Nickel with Lasers

July 19, 2022

A team of researchers at the National Institute for Materials Science and Osaka University Graduate School of Engineering in Japan, has successfully demonstrated the fabrication of single crystal nickel with additive manufacturing, and they are hoping it finds applications in aerospace.

Single crystal metals are highly prized for applications undergoing high stresses and strains and in high temperature environments such as inside a jet engine. They also crack less during manufacturing. Typically they are manufactured with casting.

Traditional turbine blades used to be polycrystalline in nature, meaning that the alloy material consists of random crystals formed as the cast blade cools. The interfaces between these random grains are called the grain boundary, and these are a point of weakness in the microstructure of the material.

A solution to this problem was found by carefully guiding the crystal seed growth through geometric features inside the mold to guide the solidifying blade into a single crystal.

Single crystals are better for strength, thermal stability, and in an aircraft, this means better efficiency.

You can see the image of the formed cylindrical crystal in the graphic below.

NIMS
Wide radius, flat intensity profile. (Image credit: NIMS)

Previous research in this area has demonstrated that these single crystals can be fabricated with electron beam melting, but due to the vacuum requirements of EBM, it is prohibitively expensive as a wider solution.
The researchers have instead used laser powder bed fusion, and by altering the laser they have been successful in printing the crystals so they align with the crystal’s axis.
Specifically they used a flat-top laser beam, which provides an equal intensity across a cross section of the beam, resulting in a flat melt pool forming on the powdered metal, which encourages correct orientation of the formed crystals.

Conversely, a laser with a Gaussian intensity distribution results in more crystal defects and more random orientation of the grains.

The result of using the flat top laser is the ability to produce single crystals without grain boundaries that are strong at high temperatures typical inside jet engines.

As previously mentioned, when growing crystals in the traditional manner, seed crystals and geometric features are used in the mold to guide the crystal growth. An advantage of utilizing additive manufacturing for creating single crystal metals is that there is no need for the seed stage.

This technique may be used to fabricate a wide variety of single-crystalline materials, including heat-resistant materials for jet engines and gas turbines.

single crystal
A single crystal, for your visual reference. (Image credit: Encyclopedia Britannica)

The 3D printing technique with the flat top laser can also be used with other metals and alloys to create a range of single crystals perfect for aerospace and power generation applications such as jet engines and gas turbines respectively.

You can find the paper titled “Manufacturing single crystals of pure nickel via selective laser melting with a flat-top laser beam” in the Additive Manufacturing Letters journal at this link.

Share:
WhatsApp Twitter Facebook LinkedIn Buffer Reddit E-mail
About the author | Phillip Keane
Phillip is an aerospace engineer from UK. He is a graduate of Coventry University (UK), International Space University (France) and Nanyang Technological University (Singapore), where he studied Advanced Manufacturing at the Singapore Centre for 3D Printing.
Join our newsletter

Our newsletter is free & you can unsubscribe any time.

Latest posts

FRCE Innovation Lab Creates Rapid Solution for F-35 Fleet

Fleet Readiness Center East (FRCE) has produced 2,000 O-ring installation tools for F-35 Lightning II aircraft using 3D printing technology. The project was... read more »

Military
FRCE Innovation Lab Creates Rapid Solution for F-35 Fleet

Etsy’s New 3D Printing Restrictions: What Sellers Need to Know

Etsy has recently updated its policy regarding items in the "Made by a Seller" category, specifically clarifying rules for products created with "computerized... read more »

News

New 3D-Printing Technique Creates Dual-Material Objects from Single Resin

Researchers have developed a new Vat photopolymerization technique that creates both permanent objects and dissolvable supports in a single process. According to a... read more »

Materials
New 3D-Printing Technique Creates Dual-Material Objects from Single Resin

Northumbria Receives EU Funding for Sustainable 3D-Printed Construction Research

Northumbria University has received a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) Fellowship worth over a quarter million euros to research low-carbon, 3D-printed construction materials. The... read more »

Construction
Northumbria Receives EU Funding for Sustainable 3D-Printed Construction Research

3D-Printed Sports Bra Could Help Olympic Star Break Historic Athletics Record

Nike has developed a new 3D-printed sports bra called the FlyWeb Bra for runner Faith Kipyegon's attempt to break the 4-minute mile barrier.... read more »

News
3D-Printed Sports Bra Could Help Olympic Star Break Historic Athletics Record

Vietnam Emerges in High-Tech Medicine as Vinmec Pioneers 3D-Printed Breakthroughs

Across pediatric, adult, and geriatric cases, Vietnam’s Vinmec Healthcare System's implementation of 3D printing solutions has significantly transformed patient outcomes, replacing disability with... read more »

Medical
Vietnam Emerges in High-Tech Medicine as Vinmec Pioneers 3D-Printed Breakthroughs

Johns Hopkins APL Helps Navy Overcome Metal 3D Printing Reliability Concerns

Researchers at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) are working with the Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) to address reliability concerns with... read more »

3D Printing Metal
Johns Hopkins APL Helps Navy Overcome Metal 3D Printing Reliability Concerns

New 3D Printing Technique Creates Glass Objects at Low Temperatures

Researchers at MIT Lincoln Laboratory have developed a new low-temperature process for 3D printing glass objects. This method creates complex glass structures without... read more »

News
New 3D Printing Technique Creates Glass Objects at Low Temperatures

Farsoon Launches High-Volume Copper Alloy 3D Printing System FS621M-Cu

Farsoon has developed a specialized 3D printing system for producing large copper alloy components for aerospace applications. The company's new FS621M-Cu system, built... read more »

3D Printing Metal
Farsoon Launches High-Volume Copper Alloy 3D Printing System FS621M-Cu

Pratt & Whitney Tests 3D Printed Rotating Part for TJ150 Engine

Pratt & Whitney has completed a series of tests on its 3D printed TJ150 turbine wheel. The company, an RTX business, reports the... read more »

Aerospace
Pratt & Whitney Tests 3D Printed Rotating Part for TJ150 Engine

Social

  • Facebook Facebook 3D Printing
  • Linkedin Linkedin 3D Printing
Join our newsletter

Our newsletter is free & you can unsubscribe any time.

Featured Industries

  • Automotive
  • Aerospace
  • Construction
  • Dental
  • Environmental
  • Electronics
  • Fashion
  • Medical
  • Military
  • QIDI Tech X-Max 3

    • - Print size: 325 x 325 x 315 mm
    • - fully enclosed
    More details »
    $799.00 QIDI Store
    Buy Now
  • QIDI Tech Q1 Pro

    • - Print size: 245 x 245 x 245 mm
    • - 600mm/s max speed
    More details »
    $449.00 QIDI Store
    Buy Now
  • QIDI Plus4

    • - Print size: 305 x 305 x 280 mm
    • - print temperature of 370°C
    More details »
    $799.00 QIDI Store
    Buy Now
  • Snapmaker Artisan Premium 3-in-1

    • - Print size: 400 x 400 x 400 mm
    • - comes with enclosure
    More details »
    $2,999.00 Snapmaker
    Buy Now

Company Information

  • What is 3D Printing?
  • Contact us
  • Join our mailing list
  • Advertise with us
  • Media Kit
  • Nederland 3D Printing

Blog

  • Latest News
  • Use Cases
  • Reviews
  • 3D Printers
  • 3D Printing Metal

Featured Reviews

  • Anycubic Photon Mono M5s
  • Creality Ender 5 S1
  • The Mole 3D Scanner
  • Flashforge Creator 3 Pro

Featured Industries

  • Automotive
  • Aerospace
  • Construction
  • Dental
  • Environmental
  • Electronics
  • Medical
  • Military
  • Fashion
  • Art
2025 — Strikwerda en Dehue
  • Home
  • Join our mailing list
  • Contact us
Blog
  • Latest News
  • Use Cases
  • Reviews
  • 3D Printers
  • 3D Printing Metal
Featured Industries
  • Automotive
  • Aerospace
  • Construction
  • Dental
  • Environmental
  • Electronics
  • Medical
  • Military
  • Fashion
  • Art
Company Information
  • What is 3D Printing?
  • Contact us
  • Join our mailing list
  • Advertise with us
  • Media Kit
  • Nederland 3D Printing