Ohio State awarded America Makes funding to advance additive manufacturing design, testing, and monitoring

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CDME students operating the AddUp FormUp 350

To advance the maturation of additive manufacturing (AM) technologies, America Makes has announced The Ohio State University's Center for Design and Manufacturing Excellence (CDME) as a winner of its recent Rapid Innovation Call (RIC). Through this initiative, Ohio State will receive funding from the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), Materials and Manufacturing Directorate, and Manufacturing and Industrial Base Technology Division.

America Makes, the national accelerator for additive manufacturing and 3D printing, introduced topics of the RIC in August during the America Makes Technical Review and Exchange (TRX). The topics represent a concerted effort by the institute and its members to strategically prioritize investment in technical topics that will best help shape the industry's direction.

Ohio State researchers were awarded two projects, each receiving $100,000 in funding while addressing different topic domains.

Below is the complete list of recent RIC award winners and their related topics:

  • Advancing Lightweight Design for AM of Thin Walls and Struts
    The Ohio State University – Metal Lattice Design, Testing, and Application Study
  • Understanding Build Interruptions via AM Monitoring Methods
    The Ohio State University – Quantifying the Effects of Build Interruptions Through In-Process Monitoring and Mechanical Test
  • AM Part Families for Product Q&C
    ASTM – Best Practices for Additive Manufacturing Part Families Relating to Product Qualification and Certification
  • Defect Detection and Mitigation via Hybrid AM
    Open Additive – Defect Detection and Mitigation via Selective Laser Ablation & Melting (SLAM)
  • Defect Detection and Mitigation via Hybrid AM
    Pennsylvania State University – Hybrid Additive Manufacturing Error Recognition and Resolution (HAMERR)

$500,000 of total funding was distributed amongst the awarded projects.

Advancing Lightweight Design for AM of Thin Walls and Struts

Ohio State's award-winning submission, "Metal Lattice Design, Testing, and Application Study," will continue to build and develop lattice best practices by leveraging lessons learned from a previous America Makes project administered by Ohio State.

The new project aims to support lightweight design methods of AM thin walls and struts by further advancing the processability of these structures. The goal is to better understand the manufacturability of lightweight designs and structures to advance their adoption in the automotive, aerospace, medical, and energy industries.

CDME will partner with Ohio State's Dynamic Mechanics of Materials Laboratory (DMML) on the project. DMML will lead testing, while CDME will focus on design and manufacturing. Additionally, Ohio State will receive support from Lockheed Martin, Elementum3D, and 3Degrees.

Understanding Build Interruptions via AM Monitoring Methods

The winning submission, "Quantify the Effects of Build Interruptions Through In-Process Monitoring and Mechanical Test" was designed to simulate build interruptions to better understand the impact of disruption on the mechanical properties of additively manufactured parts. CDME will evaluate multiple AM machine platforms and materials as part of the project.

The project aims to understand AM build interruptions via in-situ monitoring methods. Current monitoring research typically focuses on continuous operations of AM processes. Additional support will be provided by Northrop Grumman, Honda Aero, and Praxair.

Additional America Makes RIC Wins for CDME

This is not the first time Ohio State has won an America Makes RIC.

In November 2020, CDME was awarded funding to develop new ways for testing AM metal lattice structures to understand their properties. The technical focus of the project was directed by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The findings from the project will drive development on Ohio State's more recent winning proposal, "Metal Lattice Design, Testing, and Application Study."

In March 2021, CDME was awarded funding to investigate the capability of multiple in-process monitoring systems to characterize AM part surfaces by identifying gaps and highlighting which methods are best suited to quantify feature characteristics. The project's goal was to expand industry understanding of metal AM and establish a quantitative data set to refine best practices. This will subsequently contribute to developing qualification and certification (Q&C) standards.

Ultimately, Ohio State is well-positioned to be a leader in AM and 3D printing. CDME houses more than $5 million worth of AM equipment, including industrial 3D printers capable of processing metals, polymers, composites, biomaterials, and ceramics.