LASER-INDUCED PASTE AGGLOMERATION - A NEW PROCESS RAPID PROTOTYPING

A new process called '' Laser Induced Paste Agglomeration'' (LIPA) is being developed for the direct manufacture of tooling and functional p rototypes from the data computed by a CAD software. The paste is compo sed of a powdered material and a liquid binder. The process consists i n depositing a thin layer of paste then in solidifying a part of it by a laser beam. The 3D object is then manufactured layer by layer. Many materials, such as polymers, metals and ceramics, can be used to manu facture parts by this process. This paper mainly describes the agglome ration of ceramic paste, which is composed of alumina powder and a sil icate binder. The parts made of ceramic manufactured by this technique are porous. After sintering at 800 degrees C, the strength of four-po int bending tests on the samples (10.6 - 17.3 MPa) is comparable with some other similar processes (10 - 18.7MPa). The phase transformations during the agglomeration and the sintering are also discussed.