拉夫堡大学利用Freemelt电子束熔化技术推动增材制造研究

In the quest to unlock the full potential of additive manufacturing (AM), research institutions are turning to more flexible and powerful tools. A prime example is Loughborough University in England, which is now leveraging cutting-edge Electron Beam Melting (EBM) technology from Swedish innovator Freemelt to propel its materials science research forward. This move highlights a significant trend in advanced manufacturing: the shift towards open-architecture systems that empower true scientific discovery.

为了释放增材制造的全部潜力，研究机构正转向更灵活、更强大的工具。一个典型的例子是英国的拉夫堡大学，该校目前正利用瑞典创新公司Freemelt的尖端电子束熔化技术，推动其材料科学研究向前发展。此举突显了先进制造领域的一个重要趋势：向开放式架构系统转变，以赋能真正的科学发现。

The research is spearheaded by Professor Moataz Attallah, a veteran with over 15 years of experience in laser-based AM. Professor Attallah is intimately familiar with the limitations of traditional laser technologies, especially when printing challenging, high-performance metals like copper, tungsten, and tantalum. For Loughborough, the decision to adopt Freemelt’s system was driven by one critical feature: open architecture.

这项研究由拥有超过15年激光增材制造经验的资深专家Moataz Attallah教授领导。Attallah教授深知传统激光技术的局限性，尤其是在打印具有挑战性的高性能金属（如铜、钨和钽）时。对拉夫堡大学而言，采用Freemelt系统的决定源于一个关键特性：开放架构。

“Electron beam technology succeeds where other additive techniques have struggled,” explained Professor Attallah. “The Freemelt system stands out by being open, flexible, and accessible for researchers. It allows us to experiment with parameters, explore new alloys, and develop processes that are impossible on closed commercial platforms.”

Attallah教授解释道：“在其他增材技术遇到困难的地方，电子束技术取得了成功。Freemelt系统的突出之处在于其开放性、灵活性以及对研究人员的可访问性。它使我们能够试验参数、探索新合金并开发在封闭商业平台上无法实现的工艺。”

This open-source approach removes the typical barriers of industrial machines, granting researchers unprecedented control over the printing process. It enables experimentation with both proprietary and commercial alloys, a capability that is invaluable in a university lab setting and mirrors the creative freedom found when working with premium STL files for other printing applications.

这种开源方法消除了工业机器的典型障碍，赋予研究人员对打印过程前所未有的控制能力。它使得实验既能使用专有合金，也能使用商业合金，这一能力在大学实验室环境中非常宝贵，并且类似于在其他打印应用中使用优质STL文件时所获得的创作自由。

The specific model integrated into Loughborough’s materials lab is the Freemelt ONE, a system purpose-built for materials research. Unlike common laser-based systems, EBM operates in a vacuum, making it ideal for processing highly reflective and oxygen-sensitive metals crucial for aerospace, defense, and energy sectors.

集成到拉夫堡大学材料实验室的具体型号是Freemelt ONE，这是一个专为材料研究打造的系统。与常见的激光系统不同，EBM在真空中运行，使其非常适合处理对航空航天、国防和能源领域至关重要的高反射性和氧敏感金属。

Key features of the Freemelt ONE include:

Freemelt ONE的主要特点包括：

Loughborough University is already deploying its Freemelt ONE on several frontier research projects. These include developing niobium-based alloys for next-generation spacecraft propulsion systems and investigating the 3D printing of refractory alloys. In a collaborative effort with the University of Birmingham, researchers are studying the critical role of oxygen uptake during printing. The university is also working with industrial partners like Tokamak Energy to develop advanced tungsten structures.

拉夫堡大学已经将其Freemelt ONE部署在多个前沿研究项目中。这些项目包括为下一代航天器推进系统开发铌基合金，以及研究难熔合金的3D打印。在与伯明翰大学的合作中，研究人员正在研究打印过程中氧吸收的关键作用。该大学还与Tokamak Energy等工业合作伙伴合作，开发先进的钨结构。

This work underscores a fundamental truth in advanced manufacturing: progress is fueled by accessible, flexible technology. “The uniqueness of Freemelt lies in its open-source approach, affordability, and capability to push boundaries in materials science,” Professor Attallah noted. “It empowers universities and research labs to do the real science that drives the field forward.” Just as open platforms accelerate material science, having access to a diverse library of 3D printing models accelerates innovation for designers and engineers everywhere.

这项工作强调了先进制造中的一个基本事实：进步是由可访问、灵活的技术推动的。Attallah教授指出：“Freemelt的独特之处在于其开源方法、可负担性以及在材料科学领域突破界限的能力。它使大学和研究实验室能够进行推动该领域发展的真正科学研究。”正如开放平台加速材料科学一样，拥有多样化的3D打印模型库也能加速全球设计师和工程师的创新。

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