Welcome to Module 2! Imagine this: Instead of welding metallic parts together, what if we let the weld be part itself? How to do that? Our imagination can become a reality. Directed Energy Deposition (DED) with metals is a family of processes that allow one to “draw” a part in 3D space by welding together material nonstop until the part is finished. In principle, this would be human-operable, but robotic welders do it because it requires long periods of nonstop operation. This module reviews three types of DED processes, which differ in the size and precision of the machinery used, in the form of the metal stock being welded, and in how the weld is performed. Let's start printing!

Welcome to Module 3! There are many applications for 3D printing with metals that demand extreme precision, far more so than the extrusion-based and welding-based processes—we have learned about so far—can satisfy. A class of processes called Powder Bed Fusion (PBF) addresses this concern by fusing metal powder particles with a far smaller and more concentrated heat source than Directed Energy Deposition (DED), with the powder particles laying stationary as a flat surface to further remove process variability. In this module, we will learn about two types of PBF processes, which differ in the technology used for the heat source. Let's start printing!

Welcome to Module 4! In Module 3, we discussed the powder bed fusion processes and how they produce parts with extreme geometric complexity. However, they are very slow processes. So, what could be done to improve the process speed? A class of methods known as jetting-based processes addresses these concerns by joining powder particles together at room temperature using a glue-like binder and then fusing the joined particles together into a solid part as a post-processing step. This can be done much faster than a continuous application of heat. In this module, we review two types of jetting-based processes, which differ in how the powder particles are joined together during the layer-wise printing process. Let's start printing!

Welcome to Module 5, the last Module of the Course! We know already that many applications for 3D printing with metals demand extremely strict quality control. The various fusing methods discussed earlier in the course struggle to meet these demands. Lamination-based processes address this limitation by joining together layers of metal sheets via low-intensity methods that almost exactly reproduce the properties of traditionally wrought material without needing extra post-processing work. In this module, we review two types of jetting-based processes, which differ in the technology used to fuse the metal sheets together. Let's finalize printing!