Indeed, the team’s early efforts 3D-printing with metallic materials didn’t produce the desired results. To help identify what wasn’t working, Hosseini and his team were able to test an emerging technology from Linde Gas in early 2017 that could accurately measure and control the oxygen levels in 3D-printing chambers.
Known as ADDvance™ O2 precision, the technology continuously analyses the printer chamber’s atmosphere. It has the power to detect oxygen concentrations as low as 10ppm and automatically adjust the gas mixture in the chamber accordingly.
“The system provides a real-time picture of oxygen levels in the chamber so you can follow the values over time,” explains Bo Williamsson, the Additive Manufacturing Applications Manager at Linde Gas, region Europe North.
Williamsson and his colleagues played an integral role in the installation of ADDvance at RISE, which also allows researchers to maintain oxygen levels in the printing chamber to a specific level.
“It’s sort of like a cruise control for gases in the chamber. The level remains constant throughout the printing process,” he explains.