Our Equipment & Facilities
AM Services
Characterization Services
Additive Manufacturing Equipment
Powder Bed Fusion
This new generation of quad-laser powder-bed fusion systems opens a new frontier for integration of automation, quality and productivity. With four Yb-fiber lasers with a maximum power of 400 W and a build envelop of 300 x 300 x 400 mm (11.8 x 11.8 x 15.8 in), this system enables the manufacture of high-quality complex parts from different materials. The system also comes with sophisticated melt pool monitoring and optical tomography modules.
Photo courtesy of EOS
Arcam A2X system generates the energy needed for melting a wide variety of metal powders such as titanium alloys utilizing a high power electron beam. The build chamber of the Arcam A2X is specifically designed to withstand extremely high process temperatures, up to 1100 °C. Manufacturing at high temperature and in vacuum offered by this system results in final parts with lower residual stress and enhanced mechanical properties compared to cast counterparts. This system has a build envelope of 200 x 200 x 380 mm.
This laser powder-bed fusion system is equipped with an Ytterbium continuous fiber laser and a novel melt pool monitoring device. This metal laser additive manufacturing system allows the MSAM researchers/collaborators and the affiliated industrial partners to manufacture complex parts from a variety of metallic elements. A formalized partnership with EOS has been materialized to develop novel sub-modules for this system.
* Photo courtesy of AMCM
This AM 400 laser powder-bed fusion system from Renishaw is one of the most advanced laser-based AM systems that is equipped with a pulsed Ytterbium laser, a larger SafeChange filter, improved optical control software, revised gas flow, and window protection system. This system is used for printing a variety of metallic elements. Through partnerships with industry and Renishaw, novel materials are deployed to this system by the MSAM researchers/collaborators.
Characterization & Post-Processing Equipment
Imaging & Microscopy
This ZEISS Xradia 520 Versa 3D X-ray Nano-CT scanner adds new degrees of flexibility for scientific discovery and non-destructive testing. Providing throughput thermographic imaging based on industry-best resolution and contrast (700 nm precision with a 70 nm voxel size), this system provides unique opportunity to conduct non-destructive imaging of additively manufactured parts. Innovative contrast and acquisition techniques opens new opportunities for the MSAM researchers/collaborators and the affiliated industrial partners to move beyond exploration and detect pores and cracks that are not detectable by any other CT scanner on the market.
The TESCAN VEGA3 is a versatile tungsten thermionic emission SEM system intended for both high- and low-vacuum operations. VEGA3 is equipped with modern electron optics based on a unique four-lens Wide Field Optics design with a proprietary intermediate lens. This feature enables a variety of imaging modes with valuable capabilities.
The contact-free AICON SmartScan optical scanning technology from Hexagon allows for very fast data acquisition and a high level of detail. Measurement fields from 60 mm up to 1,550 mm can be captured by changing the camera lenses and the base length. Working distance ranges from 340 mm to 1,500 mm, according to configuration. The white light scanner digitizes objects at a high speed irrespective of their size and complexity.
The Laser Scanning Confocal Microscope from Keyence combines a 3-in-1 system providing the convenience of an optical microscope with the analytical functions of an SEM and a roughness gauge. The system uses a UV laser and a 16-bit photomultipler to accurately obtain measurement data from a variety of samples made from matte black, clear, highly reflective materials and samples with steeply sloping side walls over 85°. The system has a magnification range of 50x to 24,000x enabling the collection of features at nano-level. The MSAM researchers/collaborators and the affiliated industrial partners use this system to analyze the surface quality of additive manufactured parts.
The VHX-7000 is a capable high-definition microscope that is able to take images with up to 4K resolution. It is easy to use with 20X larger depth-of-field compared to conventional optical microscopes and with fully automatic actuation for magnification and positional adjustment. It has many features such as adaptive lighting and focusing, multiple angle viewing, and large field of view capture through image stitching.
* Photo courtesy of AmScope
* Photo courtesy of KOPPACE
Other AM Facilities on campus
Faculty of Engineering
Part of the Mechatronic Vehicle Systems Lab, this lab is involved in many research projects in the field of laser additive manufacturing (LAM). LAM research areas include modeling and control, coating of hard materials, and applications of the laser additive manufacturing process.
Providing high quality rapid prototyping and end use parts to students, staff and faculty, with a focus on undergraduate students and design teams.