Selective laser melting (SLM) processes powdered metals and metal alloys. The components are well suited for machine finishing and are particularly thermally conductive.
The range of materials for laser melting in metal is similar to the range of plastics for selective laser sintering. Aluminum, chromium, nickel, stainless steel and titanium are the most important basic materials and are processed into high-performance alloys. Copper has also become a material in demand for SLM.
Here you can learn more about the application areas of SLS.
Aluminum
Particularly lightweight components are made from aluminum alloys. They allow very thin and complex structures with high stability and hardness at the same time. The material is used, for example, in motor sports or in the production of functional prototypes.
Chrome
Cobalt-chromium alloys are suitable for medical products such as dental implants. These are insensitive to corrosion and high to very high temperatures. Due to their temperature resistance, cobalt-chromium alloys are also used in turbine construction, among other applications.
Copper
Copper has only recently been used in laser melting. Due to its high thermal conductivity, it was previously considered unsuitable for additive manufacturing. When irradiated by the laser, the melt track can break off, causing cavities to form in the component. These affect both the shape and the stability of the object. In addition, some of the energy expended by the laser is reflected, making it much more difficult to melt the material. Thermal and electrical conductivity, however, are precisely the properties that make copper so attractive to industry. With a more powerful laser, specific copper alloys can now be utilized to high quality in 3D printing. One of the few companies that develop and process highly conductive copper alloys is PROTIQ.
Titanium
Components with high demands on corrosion resistance combined with high material purity are guaranteed by pure titanium or light metal alloys made of titanium. They are used to make medical implants, for example for the jaw or spine, and parts for the aerospace industry.
Tool steel
The tool steel as the universal material for metallic applications. Articles from quantity 1 to small series are produced directly from the powder. The material is used, among other things, for the production of injection molds in tool making. Additive manufacturing allows tempering channels to be introduced close to the surface directly during production, thus drastically reducing process times in the subsequent injection molding process. In this way, applications made of tool steel enable the economical manufacture of products for medical technology, the automotive industry and the aerospace industry, for example.
Stainless steel
Stainless steel alloys are used to produce components with above-average hardness and corrosion resistance. They are therefore frequently used in automotive engineering, plant engineering and shipbuilding, food processing, and medical and pharmaceutical engineering.