Proceedings of the XMO Industrial Seminar 2026: Excellence in Manufacturing and Operations
Keywords
Additive Manufacturing; Multi-material; Thermal processing; Cooling; Polymer-ceramic
Tracks
CONVERGENT MANUFACTURING
DOI
10.5703/1288284318665
Abstract
Multi-material additive manufacturing (MMAM) enables the fabrication of components with tailored properties and functionalities. However, integrating dissimilar materials such as polymers and ceramics remains challenging due to their widely differing processing temperatures. In this work, we modeled the integrated processing of polymer-ceramic systems and investigated active cooling strategies to preserve the polymeric component. The modeled MMAM approach consists of laser fusion (not necessarily powder bed) of both the polymer and the ceramic. A physical gap was designed between the two materials, and nitrogen gas flow at pressures ranging from 0.5 to 2 psi was introduced into the gap. The results showed that forced gas flow significantly enhanced convective heat transfer, effectively carrying heat away from the surface and leading to faster cooling of the polymer. This study provides insights into preserving polymers during integrated processing with ceramics, expanding the design possibilities for dissimilar materials in MMAM, which could enable innovations in applications ranging from armor to hypersonics to medical devices.
Active Cooling of Polymer-Ceramic Interfaces in Multi-Material Additive Manufacturing
Multi-material additive manufacturing (MMAM) enables the fabrication of components with tailored properties and functionalities. However, integrating dissimilar materials such as polymers and ceramics remains challenging due to their widely differing processing temperatures. In this work, we modeled the integrated processing of polymer-ceramic systems and investigated active cooling strategies to preserve the polymeric component. The modeled MMAM approach consists of laser fusion (not necessarily powder bed) of both the polymer and the ceramic. A physical gap was designed between the two materials, and nitrogen gas flow at pressures ranging from 0.5 to 2 psi was introduced into the gap. The results showed that forced gas flow significantly enhanced convective heat transfer, effectively carrying heat away from the surface and leading to faster cooling of the polymer. This study provides insights into preserving polymers during integrated processing with ceramics, expanding the design possibilities for dissimilar materials in MMAM, which could enable innovations in applications ranging from armor to hypersonics to medical devices.