Lecture 11

Sheet Lamination Processes

Additive Manufacturing 7 Families

Powder Bed Material Vat-Photo-

Fusion Extrusion polymerization

Material Beam Binder

Jetting Deposition Jetting

Sheet
Lamination
Contents

1. Introduction – Sheet lamination process

2. Gluing/Adhesive bonding
3. Thermal Bonding
4. Clamping Bonding
5. Ultrasonic Consolidation
6. Conclusion
7. Questions and Answers
1 . Introduction – Sheet lamination Process

Definition

1. Process involves sheets of

even layer thickness as per
the sliced 3D CAD data.
2. Each sheet involves cutting of
counters representation one
cross section area of part
3. Next, subsequent layer is
bound on the top of the
preceding layer
4. Sheet which is not part of
final part is sliced into cubes
using a cross-hatch cutting
operation

Fig. 1 Schematic of the LOM process

Material for process

Paper, Metal, or ceramics
 Post Processing
May or may not required.
If required, they could be sintering, etc.

Types of sheet lamination process

Based on the mechanism employed to achieve bonding between

layers:

(a) Gluing or adhesive bonding,

(b) Thermal bonding processes,
(c) Clamping, and
(d) Ultrasonic welding.
2 . Gluing or Adhesive Bonding

About Process

• Material – Paper with thermoplastic coating on one side

• Thickness of paper – 70 - 200 micron
• Cutter – laser or mechanical

Types of Process

Bond-then-Form = The laminate is bonded first to the substrate and is

then formed into the cross-sectional shape.

Form-then-Bond = The laminate is formed first and then bonded to the

substrate.
1. Bond-then-Form Processes

Steps
1. Placing the laminate - adhesive-backed
2. Bonding it to the substrate – by heated roller to melt the plastic coating
3. Cutting it according to the slice contour – using laser/cutting knife
4. Support material is diced using a crosshatch pattern into small
rectangular pieces – tiles/Cubes
5. Process repeats until part is completed.
6. Then, post-processing is done.
7. Wood carving tool is used to remove the excess material
8. When part is cold, difficult to remove support material. So, part is kept
in oven for some time and support is removed.

Support material removal for three golf balls made using a Solidimension machine.
 Material

• Paper, polymer sheets, metal, ceramic, and composite materials.

• For metals: high-temperature furnace post-processing is used to de-bind

and sinter the structure

Advantages

1. Little shrinkage, residual stresses, and distortion problems within

the process
2. When using paper feedstock, the end material is similar to plywood
3. Large parts can be fabricated rapidly
4. Wide variety of material can be used
5. Nontoxic, stable, and easy-to-handle feedstock
6. Low material, machine, and process costs relative to other AM
systems
Disadvantages

1. Most paper-based parts require coating to prevent moisture absorption and

excessive wear.
2. The control of the parts’ accuracy in the Z-dimension is difficult due to
swelling or inconsistent sheet material thickness
3. Mechanical and thermal properties of the parts are inhomogeneous
4. Small part feature detail is difficult to maintain due to the manual decubing
process

Applications

1. Paper based LOM = as a wooden patterns in indstry

2. Patterns for sand-casting
2. Form-then-Bond Processes

• Sheet material is cut to shape first and then bonded to the substrate.

2.1 Glue based – offset fabbing = Steps

• Suitable sheet material with an adhesive backing is placed on a Carrier
• Cut to the outline of the desired cross-section using knife
• Shaped laminate is then placed on top of the previously deposited layers
and bonded to it.
• This process continues until the part is complete
 2.2 Computer-Aided Manufacturing of laminated Engineering Materials

• A process for fabrication of functional ceramic parts.

• Steps:

1. laser cut from sheet stock of

green ceramic or metal tape
2. These slices are precisely
stacked one over another
3. bonded using heat and
pressure or another adhesive
method
4. Furnace processed to gain
mechanical properties
5. Support structure is required
here

Challenge with this process: large amount of shrinkage 12-18% and thus
dimensional inaccuracies and distortion
Fig. 8.5 A ceramic microfluidic distillation device
Advantages of Form-then-Bond Approach

1. facilitates construction of parts with internal features and

channels
2. No danger of cutting into the previous layers
3. The time-consuming and potentially damage-causing decubing
step is eliminated

Disadvantages of Form-then-Bond Approach

1. External supports for building overhanging features

2. Some type of tooling or alignment system to ensure a newly
bonded layer is registered properly
3 . Thermal Bonding

• Most commonly used process – Form-then-bond is very famous due to

support removal issues

• For metallic sheets/foils: diffusion bonding, laser spot welding, and brazing
techniques

Success Stories
Yi et al. [4] 1 mm thick sheets – diffusion bonded

Himmer et al. [5] Aluminum injection molding dies with intricate

cooling channels=
Al 3003 + coating of low-melting point Al 4343 =
2.5-mm thick ====== heating done above
Melting point of the Al 4343 coating material

Himmer et al. [6] Layer bonding using

brazing and laser spot welding processes
 Success Stories
Obikawa [7] Steel sheets + coated with low-melting-point
alloy

Wimpenny et al. [8] Laminated steel tooling with conformal cooling

channels by brazing laser-cut steel sheets.

Yamasaki [9] Dies for automobile body manufacturing using

0.5-mm thick steel sheets

Summary =

Thermally bonding metal sheets is an

effective method for forming complex
metal parts and tools, particularly those
which have internal cavities and/or
cooling channels.
Although this process is attractive, they have gained little
traction commercially. This is because of following reasons:

1. Bond-then-form processes require extensive post-

processing to remove support materials.

2. Form-then-bond processes are difficult to automate for

arbitrary, complex geometries

3. Accurate registration of laminates is difficult to achieve

and may require a part-specific solution
4 . Processes Based on Sheet Metal Clamping

• It involves simply clamping of the sheets together using bolts and/or a

clamping mechanism rather than using an adhesive or thermal bonding
method.

• For simple shapes, this method is best.

Advantages

1. Easy
2. quick and inexpensive
3. enables the laminates to be disassembled, if required

Disadvantages

The laminates might separate from one another (leaving gaps) under
certain conditions
5 . Ultrasonic Consolidation
• Hybrid Sheet Lamination Process = Untrasonic Metal Seam Welding + CNC
milling
• Commercialized by Solidica Inc., USA in 2000
• It is a bond-then-form process

Process:
1. The object is built up on a rigidly held base plate bolted onto a
heated platen (upto 200 °C).
2. Layer is composed of several metal foils (100–150 um thick) laid side-
by-side.
3. A rotating sonotrode travels along the length of a thin metal foil.
4. The sonotrode oscillates transversely to the direction of motion, at
~20 kHz frequency.
5. The next layer is bonded to the previously deposited layer using the
same procedure.
6. After 4 layers deposition, the CNC milling head slices the counter.
7. process continues until the final geometry of the part is achieved.
For Example: Printing of a honeycomb panel

Step 1
CAD model showing the internal
honeycomb features.

Step 2
Al 3003 base plate, which is firmly
bolted to a heated platen.
Step 3
• Metal foils used for this part are Al
3003 foils 254 mm wide and 150 um.
thick. The first layer of deposited foils
• Multiple foils are deposited side-by-side
for one layer.
• After the deposition of the first layer, a
second layer is deposited on the first
layer and so on.

Step 4
• After every four layers of deposition,
the UC machine trims the excess tape
ends, and machines internal and
external features based on the CAD
geometry.
• After every 40 layers == machine does
a surface machining pass === to
compensate for any excess z-height
Step 5
• After a series of repetitive bonding and
machining operations the facesheet
layers are deposited to enclose the
internal features

Step 6
• Four layers are deposited, and the final
panel is ready.
Advantages

1. By the introduction of CNC machining, the dimensional accuracy and

surface finish of UC end products is not dependent on the foil
thickness
2. This eliminates the stair-stepping effects
3. layer-thickness-dependent accuracy
4. Creates complex, multifunctional 3D parts, including objects with
complex internal features, objects made up of multiple materials
5. Objects can be integrated with wiring, fiber optics, sensors, and
instruments

Disadvantages

1. Lack of an automated support material in commercial systems

2. Many types of complex overhanging geometries cannot be built using
UC
1. UC Bond Quality

1. Bond strength

2. Linear Welding Density (LWD)

• Determined metallographically
• Defined as the percentage of interface which is bonded divided by the
total length of the interface between two ultrasonically consolidated
foils
• Samples should be cut perpendicular to the bonding interface and
evaluated
• Black areas represent the unbonded regions along the interfaces
2. UC Process Fundamental

Ultrasonic metal welding (UMW)

• solid-state joining approach

• Max. process temp no longer than 50% of Melting Point of alloys

• Thus, less thermal residual stresses and thermally introduced deformation

• Bonding in UMW can be by:

1. Mechanical interlocking - bonding between foils and embedded Structures

2. Melting of interface materials
3. Diffusion bonding
4. Atomic forces across nascent metal surfaces (metallurgical bonding) -
bonding of same foils
• Two conditions must be fulfilled for solid-state bonding during UC:

1. Generation of atomically clean metal surfaces

2. Intimate contact between clean metal surfaces

• How this condition is achieved in UC?

1. By plastic deformation of foil surfaces

2. Combinations of ultrasonic excitation + application of normal forces during

UC.

3. For example: metals contain surface oxides = higher hardness of oxide

surface easier is the removal of oxides

4. For example: Al 3003 alloys aluminum and aluminum oxide == best suited

5. Materials with difficult-to-remove oxide layers are problematic for

ultrasonic welding

6. difficult-to-weld materials have been shown to be UC-compatible when

employing chemical or mechanical techniques for removing the surface
oxide layers just prior to welding
• How high strain rates during UC helps in achieving good bonding :

1. UC processes also involve metal deformation at high strain rates.

2. High strain rate deformation facilitates formation of vacancies within
welded metals, and
3. thus excess vacancy concentration grows rapidly.
4. As a result, the ductility and diffusivity of the metal is enhanced
pronouncedly.
5. Both of these characteristics aid in UC bonding.
3. UC Process Parameters and Process Optimization

Important parameters

1. Oscillation amplitude
2. Normal force
3. Travel speed
4. Temperature

1. Oscillation amplitude
• Oscillation amplitude is ultrasonic energy input

• It affects the degree of elastic/plastic deformation between mating metal

interfaces and thus affects bond formation

• Ultrasonic energy for bonding = material combination + oscillation

amplitude + frequency of the sonotrode

• Sufficient oscillation amplitude helps fill the voids due to surface

roughness that are inherently present at the interface

• Excess plastic deformation can damage previously formed bonds due to

excessive states of stress and/or fatigue.
2. Normal Forces
• It is the load applied on the foil by the sonotrode.

• This establishes metallurgical bonds across the interface.

• It affects surface oxide layer removal and mating interface plastic

deformation.

• Higher normal stress can damage the formed bonds.

3. Sonotrode Travel Speed

• It determines the exposure time for welding.

• Higher speeds result in shorter welding exposure times for a given area.

• Lower speed can damage the bonding.

• An optimum travel speed is important for strong bonds.

4. Preheat Temperature

• It benefits bond formation by reducing the flow stress of metals

• Excess Heating –
1. metal foil softening - foil can stick to the sonotrode
2. In case of embedded electronics, excess temperature may damage
embedded electronics.

5. Other parameters

• Materials and material combinations - hardness, surface cleanliness, oxide

characteristics, oxide layer thickness, surface roughness
• Metal foil thickness - ~150 um - bonds are more easily formed between
thin metal foils than between thick ones
• Surface roughness of the sonotrode – material - Titanium or tool steel –
better roughness to avoid slip between the sonotrode and the foil
4. Microstructures and Mechanical Properties of UC Parts

1. Defects – 3 types of defects

Type-1: Voids along layer/layer interfaces –

• Reasons: poor surface roughness and/or insufficient input energy
• A flat upper surface and a rounded lower surface
• The metal surfaces have not bonded
Type-2: Damaged areas at the layer/layer interface
• Reasons: excess energy input so breaking of previously formed bonds
• Bonding has occurred, oxide layers have been disturbed and are difficult to
locate.

Type-3: adjacent foils within a layer.

• The physical gaps between adjacent metal foils within one layer of deposition
2. UC Microstructure

• Micro shows the two Ni 201 foils deposited on an Al 3003 substrate.

• These Ni foils exhibit some unbonded regions with several defects.
• Smooth intragrain color transition within a few grains at the surface indicates
the foil interfaces undergo some plastic deformation during UC processing
3. UC Mechanical Properties

• Properties are anisotropic due to the anisotropic properties of metal

foils
• Foils are typically stronger along the longitudinal direction
• Thus, when considering UC for part fabrication, it is important to
consider the anisotropic aspects of UC parts with respect to their
design.
5. UC Applications

1. Complex internal geometries: honeycomb structures, internal pipes or

channels, and enclosed cavities.

2. Manufacture of structures from multiple materials: any metal which can

be ultrasonically welded is a candidate material for the UC process. Al 3003
(H18 and O condition), Al 6061, Al 2024, Inconel1 600, brass, SS 316, SS 347,
Ni 201, and high purity copper

3. Fiber embedment during manufacture: Al/SiC metal matrix composite

4. Embedding of electronics and Other features to form smart structures -

sensors, actuators, processors, thermal management devices
6 . Summary– Sheet Lamination Process

• Definition – It uses sheets or ribbons of metal, which are bound together using
ultrasonic welding.

• 4 Main Types : Adhesion, thermal, clamping, ultarsonic consolidation

1. Adhesion Bonding - Paper with thermoplastic coating on one side

2. Thermal Bonding – Heat used for bonding between sheets

3. Clamping - It involves simply clamping of the sheets together using bolts and/or a
clamping mechanism rather than using an adhesive or thermal bonding method.

4. Ultrasonic Consolidation - Hybrid Sheet Lamination Process = Untrasonic Metal

Seam Welding + CNC milling

• Ultrasonic Consolidation – Process, bond quality, process fundamental, Process

Parameters optimization, microstructure and mechanical properties, and
applications
7. Questions and Discussion – Sheet Lamination
Process

1. What is Sheet Lamination Process?

2. What are types of it?
3. What are Adhesion bonding?
4. What are Thermal bonding?
5. What is Clamping?
6. What is UC?
7. What are the applications of UC?
Thank You!