Graphmatech
Graphene coated copper during testing.
Uppsala University researchers and Swedish graphene materials company Graphmatech believe they have managed to increase the density and lower the reflectivity of printed parts made with copper powder.
Printing pure copper has been considered challenging in part due to the high reflectivity and low density, the lattes because only a small part of energy is absorbed by the material in the laser powder bed fusion process.
On the back of research undertaken by Professor Ulf Jansson at the university’s Angström Laboratory, the partners believe they have overcome these issues. Harnessing the expertise that Graphmatech provides, graphene has been incorporated into the power to positively impact the density of printed parts, alter the surface of components and also reduce their porosity. Graphmatech, who was recently revealed to be working with SLS vendor Wematter, is now actively working to scale up the technology that enabled this graphene-copper powder.
“By modifying the surface of the copper powder using Graphmatech’s patented graphene technology, we successfully reduced the reflectance by up to 67%,” said Graphmatech CEO Dr Mamoun Taher.
“The new process developed to coat metal powder with graphene opens up very interesting perspectives for the design of new materials in various applications,” offered Professor Jansson.
“This 3D printable hybrid material has the potential to add value in a range of sectors, such as e-mobility, electronics and defence,” added Dr Taher.
The Uppsala University’s Simon Tidén, a PhD student has recently been awarded a poster prize at the Swedish Arena for Additive Manufacturing of Metals Conference for the research. With the technology scaling, ‘significant advances’ are being made in other graphene-metal composites and coated powders for additive manufacturing with project partners.
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