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US 6,508,980 B1Granted
Metal and ceramic containing parts produced from powder using binders derived from salt
AssigneeMassachusetts Institute of Technology
InventorsEmanuel M. Sachs, Constantinos Hadjiloucas, Samuel Allen, Helen J. Yoo
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Parts made from powder use a material that originates from a salt to bind powder particles together. The salt may be provided dissolved in a solution, as molten salt, or as a dry powder. The figure is an electron micrograph of a cross section of a silver nitrate bound product with a skeleton of steel powder.
Claims53
A method for forming a body from powder using a three-dimensional printing process, comprising the steps of:
- a. providing a layer of powder of a first material, granules of said powder layer contacting one another;
- b. printing on said layer of powder, at one or more selected regions, a liquid vehicle that contains a metal salt that will cause said powder granules to be bound together at said selected regions;
- c. repeating said steps a and b of providing a layer of powder and printing a liquid on said layer additional times until a desired amount of printed powder has been provided, said selected regions defining a body;
- and
- d. maintaining said printed liquid and powder under conditions such that a metal, which is different from said first material, and which originates from said salt solution, forms at interfaces between said powder granules, and binds adjacent granules to each other within each layer and between layers, said maintaining step comprising further processing said body at a temperature above which metal from said salt, reduces onto said powder granules at said interfaces.
2 more elements
A method for forming a body from powder using a three-dimensional printing process, comprising the steps of:
- a. providing a layer of powder of a first material, granules of said powder layer contacting one another;
- b. printing on said layer of powder, at one or more selected regions, a liquid vehicle that contains a metal salt that will cause said powder granules to be bound together at said selected regions;
- c. repeating said steps a and b of providing a layer of powder and printing a liquid on said layer additional times until a desired amount of printed powder has been provided, said selected regions defining a body;
- d. drying said body, in any number of layers, from one at a time to all of said layers simultaneously, such that crystallized metal salt from said salt solution loosely binds said granules to each other to form a bound body;
- e. removing said loosely bound body of granules from any surrounding, unbound powder;
- and
- f. maintaining said printed liquid and powder under conditions such that a metal, which is different from said first material, and which originates from said salt solution, forms at interfaces between said powder granules, and binds adjacent granules to each other within each layer and between layers, said maintaining step comprising further processing said body at a temperature above which metal from said crystallized salt reduces onto said powder granules at said interfaces.
4 more elements
A method for forming a body from powder using a three-dimensional printing process, comprising the steps of:
- a. providing a layer of powder of a first material, granules of said powder layer contacting one another;
- b. printing on said layer of powder, at one or more selected regions, a liquid vehicle that contains a metal salt and a polymeric binder, that will cause said powder granules to be bound together;
- c. repeating said steps a and b of providing a layer of powder and printing a liquid on said layer additional times until a desired amount of printed powder has been provided, said selected regions defining a body;
- d. drying said layers, either individually or in groups, such that said granules loosely bind to each other to form a bound body;
- e. removing said loosely bound granules from any surrounding, unbound powder;
- and
- f. maintaining said printed liquid and powder under conditions such that a metal which is different from said first material, and which originates from said salt solution, forms at interfaces between said powder granules, and binds adjacent granules to each other within each layer and between layers, said maintaining step comprising further processing said body at a temperature above which metal from said salt reduces onto said powder granules at said interfaces.
4 more elements
A method for forming a body from powder using a three-dimensional printing process, comprising the steps of:
- a. providing a layer of powder of a first material, granules of said powder layer contacting one another;
- b. printing on said layer of powder, at one or more selected regions, a liquid vehicle that contains a metal salt that will cause said powder granules to be bound together at said selected regions;
- c. repeating said steps a and b of providing a layer of powder and printing a liquid on said layer additional times until a desired amount of printed powder has been provided, said selected regions defining a body;
- and
- d. maintaining said printed liquid and powder under conditions such that a metal, which is different from said first material, and which originates from said salt solution, forms at interfaces between said powder granules, and binds adjacent granules to each other within each layer and between layers, said maintaining step comprising reducing said salt from said liquid so as to form a metal film at said interfaces between said powder granules.
2 more elements
A method for forming a body from powder using a three-dimensional printing process, comprising the steps of:
- a. providing a layer of metal powder of a first mate rial, granules of said powder layer contacting one another;
- b. printing on said layer of metal powder, a liquid vehicle that contains a salt that will cause said powder granules to be bound together;
- c. repeating said steps a and b of providing a layer of powder and printing a liquid on said layer, additional times until a desired amount of printed powder has been provided;
- d. maintaining said liquid and metal powder under conditions such that a metal, which originates from said salt solution, reduces from said salt while s aid salt is in said liquid vehicle and adheres to said powder granules at interfaces between said powder granules, and binds adjacent granules to each other within said layer and between layers.
1 more element
A method for forming a body from powder, comprising the steps of:
- a. providing a volume of powder of a first material, granules of said powder volume contacting one another;
- b. while maintaining said granules of said volume of powder substantially stationary relative to each other, providing in said volume of powder, a liquid vehicle that contains a metal salt, which will cause said granules to be bound together;
- and
- c. maintaining said liquid and powder under conditions such that a metal, which is different from said first material and which originates from said salt solution, forms at interfaces between said powder granules, and binds adjacent granules to each other, said step of maintaining said liquid and powder comprising the step of processing said liquid and powder to form necks of said metal between said powder granules, which necks bind said granules, said step of processing said liquid and powder comprising:
- i. drying said body;
- and
- ii. further processing said body at a temperature above which metal from said salt reduces onto said powder granules at interfaces where said granules contact each other.
4 more elements
A method for forming a body from powder, comprising the steps of:
- a. providing a volume of powder of a first material, granules of said powder volume contacting one another;
- b. while maintaining said granules of said volume of powder substantially stationary relative to each other, providing in said volume of powder, a liquid vehicle that contains a metal salt, which will cause said granules to be bound together;
- and
- c. maintaining said liquid and powder under conditions such that a metal, which is different from said first material and which originates from said salt solution, forms at interfaces between said powder granules, and binds adjacent granules to each other, said step of maintaining said liquid and powder comprising reducing said salt to a metal.
1 more element
A method for forming a body from powder using a three-dimensional printing process, comprising the steps of:
- a. providing a layer of powder of a first material, granules of said powder layer contacting one another;
- b. printing on said layer of powder, at one or more selected regions, a liquid vehicle that contains a metal compound that will cause said powder granules to be bound together at said selected regions;
- c. repeating said steps a and b of providing a layer of powder and printing a liquid on said layer additional times until a desired amount of printed powder has been provided, said selected regions defining a body;
- and
- d. maintaining said printed liquid and powder under conditions such that a metal, which is different from said first material, and which originates from said liquid vehicle and metal compound, forms at interfaces between said powder granules, and binds adjacent granules to each other within each layer and between layers, said maintaining step comprising further processing said body at a temperature above which said compound, reacts to form a metal onto said powder granules at said interfaces.
2 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.