Ceramic Additive Manufactured Magnesium: CAMM
Project partners
ELB – Eloxalwerk Ludwigsburg Helmut Zerrer GmbH
LZH: Laser Zentrum Hannover e.V.
Project start: July 2022
Motivation and goal
Magnesium is one of the lightest metals with a density 30% lower than aluminum. Magnesium and its alloys are used as lightweight materials to reduce the energy consumption of moving parts. One of the most advanced manufacturing processes for magnesium components is the powder bed melting laser beam process (PBF-LB), with which highly complex structures, e.g., lattice structures, can be produced. This technology inspires the new design for even lighter structures that can be used in many industrial sectors such as aerospace, automotive, medical or prosthetics.
A major disadvantage that limits the widespread use of magnesium alloys is their tendency to corrode due to their lower electrochemical potential compared to other metals. The formation of corrosion can be contained with a suitable surface treatment for magnesium. Plasma electrolytic oxidation (PEO) ceramic surface finishing is a technology that represents the most promising corrosion and wear protection for magnesium.
Since the PBF-LB is an innovative but also very new manufacturing process for magnesium components, there are hardly any studies on corrosion and wear protection. Therefore, the aim of this project is to develop the PBF-LB process together with a suitable PEO process to find the best interaction of all process parameters that meets different properties for different needs. The joint work of ELB and LZH, the specialists in the field of PEO and PBF-LB, will enable innovative and previously unimagined possible uses of 3D-printed magnesium components, even in highly stressed applications.
