Advanced deposition techniques for freeform fabrication of metal and ceramic parts

Two newly invented deposition techniques for the freeform fabrication of metal and ceramic parts are presented. The first deposition technique studied is one that can deposit variable sizes of filaments in a controlled manner. The second technique consists of layer deposition using an adjustable planar nozzle to generate layers directly. Laboratory scale apparatus has been built to study the behavior of filament and layer formation of these two techniques. Experiments are conducted in typical operation ranges. Analytical solutions are also developed to parametrically study the effects of changing major operational parameters as well as to provide necessary information for designing the apparatus. All results indicate that the analytical predictions agree very well with the experimental observation. Finally, recommendations on the future development of these two techniques are given.