Laser Beam Melting of Alumina: Effect of Absorber Additions

Ceramic laser beam melting offers new manufacturing possibilities for complex refractory structures. Poor absorptivity in near infra-red wavelengths of oxide ceramics is overcome with absorber addition to ceramic powders. Absorbers affect powder bed densities and geometrical stability of melted tracks. Optimum absorber content is defined for Al₂O₃ by minimizing powder bed porosity, maximizing melting pool geometrical stability and limiting shrinkage. Widest stability fields are obtained with addition of 0.1 wt.% C and 0.5 wt.% β-SiC. Absorption coefficient values of Beer-Lambert law follow stability trends: they increase with C additions, whereas with β-SiC, a maximum is reached for 0.5 wt.%. Powder particle ejections are also identified. Compared to metallic materials, this ejection phenomenon can no longer be neglected when establishing a three-dimensional manufacturing strategy.