US engineers hail ceramic 3D printing "breakthrough"

Researchers in the US have developed a ceramic processing technique that uses 3D printing to create exceptionally complex, tough and heat resistant ceramic components.

The team, from HRL laboratories in Malibu, California claims that the new process offers huge advantages over existing production techniques and could open up a range of new applications for ceramic components.

At the heart of the technique is a resin formulation that can be used with Stereolithography (SLA) an additive process that builds up a component layer by layer using a medium curable with a laser.

Once the component has been printed in this way, it is fired in a high temperature kiln, which converts the cured resin into a ceramic.

According to HRL’s Senior Chemical Engineer Zak Eckel the resulting material can withstand temperatures in excess of 1700°C and is up to ten times stronger than similar materials.

The technique – which is detailed in the latest issue of Science - is claimed to have huge advantages over existing processes.