Research
Additive Manufacturing
Next-Generation Manufacturing
Oak Ridge National Laboratory is working with additive manufacturing equipment manufacturers and end users to revolutionize the way products are designed and built. Our research and development in this crucial field are enabling a wealth of opportunities for product customization, improved performance and multifunctionality.
ORNL has a long history of working closely with industry and offers world-leading capabilities in materials development, characterization, and processing. It also has specialized facilities for modeling and simulation, creating an unmatched environment for breakthroughs in additive manufacturing.
Strategy for Success
Through collaboration with every aspect of the manufacturing supply chain, ORNL is identifying the critical equipment and materials advancements required to establish additive manufacturing as a mainstream manufacturing process and help realize the vast potential of this technology. Research and development projects currently under way will ensure additive manufacturing center-stage status in the next-generation manufacturing process by
- Expanding current build volumes
- Optimizing build parameters to increase deposition rates
- Integrating smarter in situ process controls for rapid certification and quality control
- Developing new materials and technologies for improved material properties
- Investigating alternate low-cost feedstock materials
- Increasing performance enhancements for materials, materials combinations, and functionality of components