BLT drives the engineering validation of advanced aluminium AM alloys

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Xi’an-based Bright Laser Technologies (BLT) has announced that its Laser Beam Powder Bed Fusion (PBF-LB) additive manufacturing technology has supported the development and validation of a new family of high-strength aluminium alloys. The materials were developed by Chinese materials company AccMaterial in collaboration with researchers at Shanghai Jiao Tong University.

Nature Communications published a paper addressing the challenge of developing aluminium alloys for additive manufacturing. To date, manufacturers have struggled to create a single material system that provides both high processability and both strength and ductility while achieving optimal performance across multiple factors, including manufacturing cost or efficiency and product performance. Using a design strategy called a Ductile-Transformable Eutectic Nano-Skeleton (DT-ENS) that incorporates non-equilibrium solidification has allowed the research team to develop a new method for developing a ductile aluminium alloy for use in 3D printing technology.

Through this approach, the researchers developed two alloy grades, RAE600 and RAE700. BLT’s BLT-S210 and BLT-S450 PBF-LB additive manufacturing systems played a key role during the engineering validation stage of the project. The machines supported process development, microstructural optimisation and component-scale testing of the RAE-series aluminium-erbium (Al-Er) based alloys.

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According to AccMaterial, the alloys achieved porosity levels of below 0.05 per cent under PBF-LB processing conditions. The materials also delivered yield strengths ranging between 648 MPa and 707 MPa, ultimate tensile strengths of 656 MPa to 714 MPa, and elongation values between 7.0 per cent and 10.3 per cent.

Researchers attributed this combination of strength and ductility to the formation of an Al₃(Er, Mg) eutectic nano-skeleton. During deformation, the structure reportedly supports plastic deformation through nanotwinning and the formation of 9R-type long-period stacking structures, improving mechanical performance.

During engineering verification, the BLT-S210 system was primarily used for process development and parameter optimisation due to its repeatability and precise process control. Researchers stated that this enabled faster identification of suitable alloy compositions and processing settings for microstructural analysis.

Meanwhile, the larger BLT-S450 system assessed the manufacturability of larger components. Its multi-laser architecture was used to evaluate density and material consistency in larger parts, helping advance the alloys towards industrial applications.

The RAE alloy family has reportedly been validated for demonstration parts such as robotic leg structures, satellite brackets and lightweight topology-optimised components. AccMaterial also confirmed that patent applications related to the technology have been filed across Europe, the United States, Japan, Russia and other regions.