Additive manufacturing is used in all industries. Whether in vehicle and aircraft construction, medical technology or electronics production. The fact that the manufacturing technology is also conquering new industries is also due to the materials. In addition to plastics, more and more metals can be additively processed and the demand for metallic materials is increasing.

Deutsche Edelstahlwerke has recognized the trend and offers various steels for 3D printing. When developing the metal powders, the steel producer involves the user in the entire process chain: starting with the alloy idea, through the production of the powder, to the ready-to-use prototype and component, right up to large-scale production via additive manufacturing. The steel experts from Witten and Krefeld now produce up to 200 materials using powder metallurgy. Recently, this has also included the bainitic special steel Bainidur AM and the austenitic steel Printdur HSA.

Bainitic steel for the 3D printer

The bainitic special steel can be processed without distortion and with little machining allowance, which saves on costly process steps. Thanks to powder metallurgical processing, the steel can now be used for 3D printing as well as for large-scale production, for example in automotive engineering. There are currently only a few low- and medium-alloy steels on the market that can be processed using additive manufacturing. Bainidur AM now meets this need, as it can be used to print initial samples quickly and efficiently, which also exhibit the subsequent component properties. Heat treatment and thermochemical surface treatments can be tested and optimized with the same material as in series production.
The fact that the special steel can be processed both mechanically and additively also opens up new potential in spare parts management: when the forging dies are no longer available, spare parts can be additively manufactured and are indistinguishable from the original. This is facilitated by its good transformation behavior into the bainite structure. This makes the material good-natured in powder production and printing. For example, high-strength components for lightweight automotive construction can be produced reliably, without distortion and with little machining allowance and reduced heat treatment effort. The material properties often allow the component to be used without further heat treatment.
Due to the increased component strength, it is possible to reduce the size and therefore the weight. A measure that significantly saves_CO2. Many parts can also be used completely without heat treatment after printing. Another advantage of the new special steel is its good machinability and nitridability. According to the company, it is also characterized by good notched impact strength.

Austenitic steel - non-magnetic and corrosion-resistant

Deutsche Edelstahlwerke has processed the bainitic special steel Bainidur using powder metallurgy. This makes Bainidur one of the few steels that can be used both for 3D printing and for large series, for example in automotive parts. © German stainless steel works

Printdur HSA is a powder produced by gas atomization that has a 99 percent austenitic structure in the printed state. As a result, the material is non-magnetic. It is characterized by significantly improved strength values and offers application potential in many industries. According to the company, the material's properties make it best suited for selective laser melting, also known as laser powder bed fusion (LPBF).

Compared to typical austenitic steels, the material is characterized by a significantly higher yield strength, tensile strength and hardness. For example, although the material 1.4404 (316L) has established itself as a standard steel in additive manufacturing, it has a significantly lower strength level compared to Printdur HSA, according to Deutsche Edelstahlwerke: the yield strength and tensile strength of Printdur HSA are twice as high, according to the company. A Pitting Resitance Equivalent Number (PREN) of 36 indicates very good corrosion resistance: In the printed state, the austenitic steel powder is corrosion-resistant according to both SEP 1877 Method II (test for resistance to intergranular corrosion) and ASTM G48 Method E (test for resistance to pitting corrosion).

Cross-industry opportunities

These properties open up a wide range of possible applications with just one material: whether in mechanical engineering, food and chemical plants, pump components, the power plant industry or the automotive industry. Although additive manufacturing cannot replace traditional mold making, it can improve the efficiency of production. For example, 3D metal printing offers particular advantages in the production of complex shapes: These include the construction of prototypes or the production of cores, cavities or inserts for tools, dies and molds for the production of small batches. Freedom of design and short production times have a positive effect here.

According to documents from Deutsche Edelstahlwerke / ag