Aluminum alloys are essential powders in the world of additive manufacturing (AM). Their attractive combination of fine microstructures, high heat conductivity and low weight make their mechanical properties higher or at least comparable to cast material. This makes aluminum alloys well-suited and in high demand for additive manufacturing processing for automotive and aerospace industries. Yet, there are still some challenges with these alloys in AM:
- Powder quality
- AM processability
- Production of repeatable and reliable parts
Strong quality control process, and manufacturing methods, are essential to produce high quality, extra clean and consistent powder batch after batch. This will answer the AM aluminum alloy challenges and continue to stimulate its industrial adoption.
Bios
Dr. Javier Arreguin is a Senior Materials Project Manager that joined AP&C, a GE Additive Company, in April 2017. Before joining GE Additive, Javier was involved in various projects supporting the adoption and certification of additive manufacturing technologies for Aerospace OEMs, starting from technology benchmarking through to part printing and process characterization. He gained hands-on experience with various powder metallurgy processing techniques such as laser powder bed fusion, electron beam melting, powder deposition, powder sintering and hot isostatic pressing.
In his current role, he oversees specialized research partnerships with key AP&C customers. Among his objectives are ensuring material optimization and process reliability. He is also parts of ASTM, ISO, SAE-AMS and NADCAP committees for Additive Manufacturing Powder Feedstock. Javier’s background is in Physics and he holds Masters and Ph.D. degrees in Materials Science. He has eleven years of powder metallurgy experience and more than seven with additive manufacturing technologies directly.
Lionel Doutriaux was named Director of Business Development of AP&C, a GE Additive Company in April 2017. Prior to joining GE Additive, Lionel has spent most of his career in the aerospace industry, in Europe and North America. His professional interest has always been to be close to end-applications and to enjoy finding solutions for customers. He has held various positions, always close to clients, from Customer Support to Program Management, to Sales.
He’s intimately involved with our partners, creating new business models and trying to solve key industry challenges. Focused on making both AP&C and our customers successful, his efforts are setting a strong foundation for GE Additive, and the additive industry as a whole. Lionel holds a Master’s degree in Engineering, with a major in Structures and Materials.
