The United States Air Force Rapid Sustainment Office (RSO) recently expanded their material characterization agreement with Elementum 3D (E3D) focused on specification, dataset generation, and application testing of A6061-RAM2 for laser powder bed fusion additive manufacturing. The newly exercised Option includes as-built fatigue, as-built and machined fracture toughness and fatigue crack growth testing, stress corrosion cracking testing, wear testing, and additional tensile testing. This testing will provide a more thorough understanding of A6061-RAM2 T6 material properties for specific applications and provide a robust dataset for part design and qualification.

As part of the project, Elementum 3D is developing a full dataset based on MMPDS S-basis guidelines as well as performing additional testing to consider the impact of wall thickness, as-built surfaces, and HIP on material properties and applications. The combination of material property characterization and application studies, including non-destructive testing evaluation and a prototype part study, will provide the RSO with information they need to start qualifying parts out of A6061-RAM2 on EOS M290 printers used for this effort.

The Elementum 3D team is excited to leverage their knowledge and expertise in materials development, specifications, and printer qualification towards the success of this project. Their active involvement in AMS AM Metals and MMPDS committees will be leveraged with industry experience in specification, dataset development, and qualification for AM materials.

As AM material experts, E3D is excited to work with the RSO to produce a robust material dataset, material and process specification, and application testing to enable use of this aerospace grade aluminum and additive manufacturing to support life cycle management and sustainment of the US Air Force.

On July 20, Elementum 3D entered 15 employees along with 7 others outside the company in the “Tough Mudder” event held at Fort Carson, Colorado. All 22 competitors finished with their heads high and some bruises, scraps, and cramps.

This event went beyond running, jumping, climbing, swinging, and balancing, the “Elementum 3D Stronger, Tougher, Faster” team had to establish trust, communicate efficiently, and — most of all — lend a helping hand to conquer the 10+ mile course that included over 20 grueling and muddy obstacles.

Getting muddy together proved to be a fun way to build connections with teammates from different departments, improve company morale, and inspire some friendly competition.

On June 24^th, the Materials Consortium (MC) hosted its first event at the Mimo Technik Facility in Carson, CA. The exclusive gathering of around 100 additive manufacturing (AM) suppliers and customers were treated to the unveiling of cutting-edge metal AM material and processing achievements, many networking opportunities, and tasty food from a fried chicken sandwich food truck.

The Materials Consortium is a collective group of leading metal AM powder producers working together to create and share open parameter datasets and testing results for their materials. These open parameter sets, made freely available to all end-users, are designed to enhance collaboration, improve project outcomes, and speed up the integration of new materials and techniques into industries that have been slow to take up AM.

The event featured materials updates from the MC members, which include Dyndrite, Constellium, Sandvik, and Elementum 3D. Each member showcased their latest achievements and disclosed initial sets of process parameters. Highlights of the session included updates on notable materials such as Constellium Aheadd® CP1, Sandvik Osprey C18150, and Elementum 3D A2024-RAM2^TM. Moreover, the member’s presentations provided a rare opportunity to learn more about their material suppliers, corporate structure, and value proposition. The Q&A portion was also insightful; many questions were asked at the event, but it was clear that material surface finish, tensile properties, and availability were of interest to a large portion of attendees.

This was a unique opportunity for the Materials Consortium members to share their perspective on how metal 3D printing materials can elevate component performance and lower qualification and production costs. Their unified efforts to widen the range of usable materials, accelerate AM materials process development and qualification, extend productivity parts, and increase the adoption of metal AM in production environments is an obvious benefit to those in the AM industry and beyond.