Low-Cost Laser Powder Bed Fusion-Based Additive Manufacturing of Densified Ceramics

This article investigates the feasibility of additively manufacturing densified alumina-based ceramics using laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) with ceramic substrates at low cost. Relationships between process parameters and geometric bead characteristics are quantified using Canny edge detection methods. A set of process parameters that result in continuous melt pool formation and solidification is presented. Remelting and intralayer fusion are also identified, demonstrating for the first time that a low-cost diode laser can achieve densification in an impure RTG substrate, indicating that densification and intralayer fusion are achievable.