Recent advances in additive manufacturing of biometals, including iron, magnesium, zinc, and their alloys, at the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT), Rochester, New York, have transformed the development of patient-specific implants and bone plates. These materials boast superior mechanical strength and biocompatibility while offering the unique advantage of gradual degradation, eliminating the need for removal surgeries, which are ideal for temporary biomedical applications.

Researchers at Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, have developed the first known metallic gel, a groundbreaking material made entirely of metal powders that can withstand extreme temperatures. Unlike typical gels used in everyday products, this innovative gel is created by mixing two metal powders. When heated, one metal melts, forming a liquid that is trapped within a solid scaffold of the other metal, creating a gel-like structure.

Rio Tinto Iron and Titanium (RTIT) will permanently close the operations of the metal powder plant at the Critical Minerals and Metallurgical Complex in Sorel-Tracy, Canada, by the end of 2025.

Students at UNC-Charlotte receive lectures on metal powder technologies.
 

The MPIF Industry Development Board (IDB) continues its new University Outreach Program to promote metal powder technologies to future engineers. Recently, Scott Davis, Hoeganaes Corporation, and Stefan Joens, Elnik Systems, LLC, took over three separate classes, Manufacturing, Manufacturing Systems, and Design of Machine Elements class at the University of North Carolina-Charlotte. The feedback from the students and professors was very positive, remarking that they appreciated the industry providing a firsthand look at what the metal powder industry has to offer. Next up are the University of Texas at El Paso and Purdue University-Indianapolis. 

Automotive piston additively manufactured using the ORNL-developed DuAlumin-3D alloy.
 

From automotive to aerospace, this versatile alloy delivers exceptional strength and fuel efficiency. Researchers at Oak Ridge National Laboratory have made significant strides in utilizing DuAlumin-3D, an innovative aluminum alloy, for high-temperature automotive components, greatly enhancing the potential for additive manufacturing.

Höganäs AB has launched PowdrIQ, an international challenge for university students to explore innovative applications for metal powders. Open to undergraduates, master’s, and PhD students, the challenge invites participants to identify new uses for metal powders in three key areas: sustainability, performance and efficiency, and market needs. An internal committee will evaluate submissions based on innovation, feasibility, sustainability impact, and industry relevance.

Recently Released

Herausgeber FKM

The FKM Guideline “Analytical Strength Assessment of Components Made of Sintered Steels” is the first publicly available, engineer ready design rule dedicated to pressed and sintered steels. It is fully aligned with the established FKM framework for local, elastic stress assessment. It closes a long-standing gap: while wrought and cast steels are well covered, powder metallurgy (PM) components have lacked a coherent, validated assessment method.

A new metal AM aluminum alloy.
 

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) engineers have developed a printable aluminum alloy that can withstand high temperatures and is five times stronger than traditionally manufactured aluminum. The new printable metal is made from a mix of aluminum and other elements that the team identified using a combination of simulations and machine learning, which significantly pruned the number of possible combinations of materials to search through. While traditional methods would require simulating over 1 million possible combinations of materials, the team’s new machine learning-based approach needed only to evaluate 40 possible compositions before identifying an ideal mix for a high-strength, printable aluminum alloy.

Penn State University Associate Professor Guha Manogharan seeks to optimize the qualification process for AM parts

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has awarded Penn State University, State College, Pennsylvania, $1.6 million to advance research in additive manufacturing (AM). Mechanical engineering Associate Professor Guha Manogharan, co-director of the Center for Innovative Materials Processing through Direct Digital Deposition (CIMP-3D), will lead the project as the principal investigator. The research will be conducted in collaboration with Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, Texas.

Penn State University Associate Professor Guha Manogharan seeks to optimize the qualification process for AM parts

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has awarded Penn State University, State College, Pennsylvania, $1.6 million to advance research in additive manufacturing (AM). Mechanical engineering Associate Professor Guha Manogharan, co-director of the Center for Innovative Materials Processing through Direct Digital Deposition (CIMP-3D), will lead the project as the principal investigator. The research will be conducted in collaboration with Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, Texas.

The University of Arizona Mach-X research team

The University of Arizona's Mach-X engineering team has been awarded a $5 million grant from the U.S. Army to develop an advanced alloy manufacturing process using 3D additive manufacturing (AM) and machine learning. This initiative aims to produce critical components for aircraft capable of flying at speeds exceeding five times the speed of sound.