The University of Turku in Finland has installed a Schaeffler Aerosint SPD2.1-B5 multi-material recoater on its Aconity MIDI+ metal 3D printer, an upgrade that extends the system from single-material processing to selectively placing several powders within individual layers.

AM4Plasma, a EUREKA Network project coordinated by the university and supported by Business Finland’s Co-Innovation program to develop plasma generator hardware, funded the equipment. The university plans to use the setup to study how to design a component’s geometry and material composition together.

“Multi-material manufacturing allows us to ask which material is needed in each region of a component and how those materials can work together. This infrastructure gives us a platform to investigate those questions, develop our expertise, and explore new applications with industrial partners,” said Ashish Ganvir, Associate Professor at the University of Turku and Principal Investigator of the AM4Plasma Research Project.

Standard LPBF recoaters spread one metal powder across the build area before a laser fuses selected regions. The Aerosint unit uses three powder-delivery drums to deposit different powders in chosen regions of the same layer before laser processing. Repeating the process layer by layer brings material distribution into component design alongside shape.

Interfaces and plasma-facing parts

The university reported that the platform would support research into laser-material interactions, solidification, bonding between neighboring materials, cracking and other defects. Sound multi-material parts also require suitable material combinations, processing conditions and interface quality.

AM4Plasma provided the first application, pairing a region built to withstand intense thermal exposure with another that carried heat to cooling channels, for future fusion energy and aerospace propulsion platforms.

“The infrastructure’s longer-term significance extends beyond this application. It provides a platform for future studies of material combinations, manufacturing processes and multifunctional component design,” Ganvir said.