Materials

Titanium’s lightweight, superior strength and corrosion resistance have

long attracted designers and engineers in the aerospace and defense industries

Titanium’s biocompatibility makes it attractive for producing

components for the medical field.titanium-6aluminium-

4vanadium (Ti6Al4V).

Cobalt chrome is a superalloy with excellent mechanical

properties. It is a very hard metal highly resistant to high temperatures, pressure
and corrosion. Cobalt chrome is used in aerospace and auto racing where parts
operate at very high temperatures.

Steel powders offer an attractive combination of value, strength and

mechanical properties. The 316L stainless steel is known for its excellent corrosion
resistance, which is why it is often used to produce automotive parts, medical
instruments and industrial spare parts. Maraging steel (MS1) is a high-strength alloy
used in the tooling industry. Designers take advantage of the AM process to produce
objects with conformal cooling channels in a manner not possible with traditional
manufacturing methods.

Inconel 718 is another superalloy with excellent mechanical properties, corrosion

resistance and top performance at high temperatures. EBM-printed parts fabricated from
Inconel 718 are used in racing and aerospace applications. Valves fabricated from this

nickel alloy are used in the petrochemical industry where durability and corrosion
resistance are important characteristics.
The system builds parts up to approximately 8 x 8 x 7 in. (200 x 200 x 180 mm), with a layer
thickness range of 0.002 to 0.008 in. (0.05 - 0.2 mm).

Applications of EBM Parts

.aerospace applications Aerospace engineers will be interested in the combination of a high

strength yet light weight titanium part. And because the EBM process produces a homogenous
solid, parts can be flight-certified.

Medical product manufacturers

Electron Beam Melting Advantages and Disadvantages

Advantages

applications where high strength or high temperatures are required.

95 percent powder recovery

EBM parts often feature complex geometries offering substantial weight savings, .

Electron beam melting produces parts with properties similar to wrought parts and better
than those of cast parts

. For many applications, EBM is a cost-effective process that reduces inventory

requirements and waste

. Reduced lead times often Improve customer satisfaction.

, designers enjoy unprecedented design flexibility

. Build rates are often 3-5 times those of other AM technologies

. Multi-beam systems simultaneously maintain multiple melt pools for enhanced

productivity
. EBM parts usually need fewer support structures than DMLS parts do

. The EBM process is approximately 95-percent energy-efficient, which is five to 10 times

better than laser-based AM processes

The electron beam melting process reduces residual stresses in a variety of ways .
During printing, residual stress is reduced by preheating the print bed and by the heating
of the material before it is struck by the electron beam

.lower residual stress is also a function of the process’ high build temperatures and
slower cool-down rates compared to laser-based AM processes.

very homogeneous microstructures

builds parts faster from DMLM

Density: Up to 99.9%

EBM allows even better microstructural control than many conventional processes.

Disadvantages ,

the availability of materials is limited and the process is rather slow and expensive

Electron beam melting is still a slow and expensive process

The surface of a part printed with electron beam melting often requires post-processing,
while the smooth surfaces of DMLM-produced parts do not typically require much post-
processing.

EBM machines require important preventative maintenance,

Conventional machining may be required to finish the goods (rough surface)

Requires vacuum operation

Extremely expensive