LLNL researchers have designed and produced, both conductive and non-conductive porous electrode components manufactured for improved metal deposition, discharging, and fluid dynamics in hybrid flow batteries. This is achieved through Direct Ink Writing (DIW) additive manufacturing. The engineered 3D electrodes enable uniform current distribution and even metal deposition during charging…
LLNL researchers refined custom mixing techniques and formulations in order to avoid clumping and fiber agglomerations for a flowable tailored feedstock that produces a homogeneous, survivable thermal barrier coating. Formulation improvements coupled with unexpected nozzle coupling from Buchi spray dry components leads to the production of fiber containing spray dried feedstock that can…
LLNL’s invention combines four approaches to enable on-the-fly multi-resolution metal droplet printing: (1) a nozzle with two or more orifices of varying diameter and length, (2) a set of corresponding pressure pulses that can eject droplets out of some, but not all, orifices in either magnetohydrodynamic (MHD-LMJ) or Pneumatic-LMJ, (3) the ability to change the pressure pulse on demand,…
LLNL researchers’ approach to this challenge is to design a modular valve subsystem that redirects the flow away from the main nozzle to an “exhaust”. By re-routing the flow to a different exit port, steady state flow can be better maintained. The re-routing requires actuators that work in tandem; open and close of the nozzle and exhaust valves have to be executed simultaneously. The…
LLNL researchers developed novel workflows where material is first cast into the LCE molds at room temperature. Upon curing, the mold is induced to expand or contract (change shape) by external stimuli (light, heat, solvent) to self-release. A reduction to practice example used silica-loaded silicone ink casted into a LCE cylinder mold. It was cured at 100°C, and self-released from the LCE…
Three important aspects of this invention are: (1) the formulation of a photocurable resin containing a fluorophore that exhibits AIE behavior; (2) the method of in-situ and real-time characterization for monitoring the reaction kinetics during the photopolymerization and UV-curing process; and (3) the application of a new 3D steganographic ink for 3D encrypted structure.
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The approach involves 3D printing hinges made of Pre-Stressed Polymers (“PSP”) onto polyimide (“PI”) substrates. These hinges are then able to fold in response to externally applied stimuli, such as light. First, 2D PI devices will be microfabricated. Then, PSP infused with colored inks will be printed using Direct Ink Write (“DIW”) on the hinges of the PI devices. When exposed to light…
The novel approach is to make Ultem® into an ink for DIW or droplet printing by dissolving Ultem® in solvents, such as tetrahydrofuran. This produces a viscous solvent-melt that is loaded into an ambient temperature extrusion system and deposited into a defined structure by the 3D printer. Solvent mobility is limited by the polymer structure, and further solvent removal allows multiple…
LLNL’s approach is to design and fabricate a massively-parallel microanode printhead using a custom complementary metal-oxide semiconductor integrated circuit (CMOS IC) chip with independent electronics for each pixel. This microanode in close proximity to the cathode surface will electroplate dissolved ions into a small voxel. The probe then moves and continues to deposit material creating…
LLNL researchers have developed an approach is to use pneumatic droplet ejection devices to rapidly 3D print solid metal parts that also have a smoother surface finish than conventional liquid metal printing. Pneumatic droplet ejection printers can be used in two different modes: “droplet mode” uses pulsed gas pressure to create individual droplets of liquid metal that are collected to build…
LLNL has developed a process to partially sinter starting material composed of smaller-sized powder particles to obtain a loose powder product that have larger-sized particles. To avoid the undesired formation of a single fully-sintered piece, the starting powder material is heated for a relatively shorter time. The time and temperature required for partial sintering is dependent on the…
To overcome challenges that existing techniques for creating 3DGs face, LLNL researchers have developed a method that uses a light-based 3D printing process to rapidly create 3DG lattices of essentially any desired structure with graphene strut microstructure having pore sizes on the order of 10 nm. This flexible technique enables printing 3D micro-architected graphene objects with complex,…
LLNL’s novel approach utilizes a number of techniques to improve reconstruction accuracy:
This novel AM approach utilizes cavitation bubbles generated within liquid resin by ultrasonic energy that trigger, induce, or catalyze a polymerization process (3D Ultrasound Polymerization). Ultrasound may be generated by piezoelectric transducers or high-power lasers and by modulating the ultrasound wave (frequency and amplitude), the cavitation site could be directed.
LLNL’s MVAM method comprises of a microwave applicator array coupled to a time-reversal beam steering algorithm to focus and deposit microwave energy in the feedstock material. The selective focusing of high-power microwave fields results in delivery of localized energy to arbitrary regions in a 3D volume. The localized area in the 3D volume heats up, allowing for the curing, sintering or…
The approach is to combine the techniques of 3D printing aligned carbon fiber composites and melt-3D printing of glasses in a non-obvious manner to allow 3D printing (with controlled microstructure, fiber alignment, complex geometries, and advanced second order composite properties) of a new class of additively manufactured fiber-glass composites. It involves four major elements:
To get the best of both worlds – the sensitivity of LC-MS with the speed of PS-MS – and a functional substrate that can maintain sample integrity, LLNL researchers looked to 3D printing. They have patented a novel approach to create lattice spray substrates for direct ionization mass spectroscopy using 3D-printing processes.
LLNL researchers, through careful control over the chemistry, network formation, and crosslink density of the ink formulations as well as introduction of selected additives, have been successful in preparing 3D printable silicone inks with tunable material properties. For DIW (direct in writing) applications, LLNL has a growing IP portfolio around 3D printable silicone feedstocks for diverse…
LLNL’s method of 3D printing fiber-reinforced composites has two enabling features:
MBD captures the complete specification of a part in digital form and leverages (at least) the universal STEP file format. MBD has revolutionized manufacturing due to time and cost savings associated with containing all engineering data within a single digital source. LLNL researchers have been able to develop a novel encoding method to transform digital definitions in any given STEP file into…
LLNL pioneered the use of tomographic reconstruction to determine the power density of electron beams using profiles of the beam taken at a number of angles. LLNL’s earlier diagnostic consisted of a fixed number of radially oriented sensor slits and required the beam to be circled over them at a fixed known diameter to collect data. The new sensor design incorporates annular slits instead,…
LLNL has developed a system and method that accomplishes volumetric fabrication by applying computed tomography (CT) techniques in reverse, fabricating structures by exposing a photopolymer resin volume from multiple angles, updating the light field at each angle. The necessary light fields are spatially and/or temporally multiplexed, such that their summed energy dose in a target resin volume…
LLNL has solved the challenges of depth-resolved parallel TPL by using a temporal focusing technique in addition to the spatial focusing technique used in serial writing systems. We temporally focus the beam (through optical set-up design) so that a sharp Z-plane can be resolved while projecting 2D “light sheets” that cause localized photo-polymerization. This enables printing of complex 3D…
LLNL has developed an optically clear iodine-doped resist that increases the mean atomic number of the part. AM parts fabricated with this resist appear radio-opaque due to an increase in the X-ray attenuation by a factor of 10 to 20 times. Optical clarity is required so that the photons can penetrate the liquid to initiate polymerization and radio opacity is required to enable 3D computed…