The present disclosure relates generally to additive manufacturing and more particularly to enhancing the surface finish of additively manufactured parts by electrochemical polishing (or “electropolishing”).
Additive manufacturing provides a variety of advantages over other manufacturing techniques. Additively manufactured parts can be built to incorporate complex internal or external features which would otherwise require difficult machining to achieve. However, many additive manufacturing techniques can result in parts with considerable surface roughness. This surface roughness can pose significant challenges to both the finishing of the part and the performance of the part during use. Surface roughness can cause problems such as increased fatigue within the part or increased flow turbulence about the part. Additionally, rougher surfaces can cause anodization or other chemical treatments to be less effective.
According to one exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, an additively manufactured intermediate part includes a body and at least one sacrificial electrode formed within or upon the body. The body includes a plurality of layers and at least one surface having a region to be smoothed in a near-finished state of the additively manufactured intermediate part. The at least one sacrificial electrode is adjacent to the body along the at least one surface, such that at least one of the plurality of layers is adjacent to the at least one sacrificial electrode in the region to be smoothed in the near-finished state of the additively manufactured intermediate part.
According to another exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, a method of manufacturing a part includes additively manufacturing the part. The part includes a body and at least one sacrificial electrode formed within or upon the body. The body includes a plurality of layers and at least one surface having a region to be smoothed in a near-finished state of the additively manufactured intermediate part. The at least one sacrificial electrode is adjacent to the body along the at least one surface, such that at least one of the plurality of layers is adjacent to the at least one sacrificial electrode in the region to be smoothed in the near-finished state of the additively manufactured intermediate part. The at least one sacrificial electrode is utilized to electrochemically polish the region of the at least one surface of the body. The at least one sacrificial electrode is removed from the body. At least one finishing process is performed on the body.
The subject matter, which is regarded as the disclosure, is particularly pointed out and distinctly claimed in the claims at the conclusion of the specification. The following descriptions of the drawings should not be considered limiting in any way.
Co-building a sacrificial electrode with an additively manufactured part can decrease surface roughness of the part. Sacrificial electrodes can be formed integrally within an intermediate part (such as within internal passages) or on the surface of the part during manufacture. These sacrificial electrodes can then be removed by a variety of processes, such as selectively dissolving the electrodes or reversing the electrodes' polarity.
As used in the present disclosure, “co-building” should be understood to refer to the process of additively manufacturing both a body of a part and a sacrificial electrode within or on the body. In this way, the body and the sacrificial electrode are built concurrently and can form an intermediate structure before the part is in a near-finished state. As described in further detail below, the sacrificial electrode can be built of the same material as the body or a different material.
In step 102, a part such as parts 200, 300, 400 is additively manufactured. The part can include a body which is monolithically built with one or more co-built sacrificial electrodes, such as sacrificial electrode 204, sacrificial shell electrode 304, or sacrificial electrode screen 404. The one or more sacrificial electrodes are integrated into the body of the part during manufacture, e.g. by deposition therewith during fabrication. The one or more sacrificial electrodes are separated from the body of the part in order to preserve electrical isolation (allowing the electropolishing in step 104 to take place) and prevent electrical shorts. The sacrificial electrode(s) can be separated from the body by an air gap, a layer of a non-conductive material such as polyvinyl chloride, or other suitable means. The choice of separation means can be selected based on the geometry of the body and the surface to be electropolished. For example, the use of a non-conductive layer applied to a surface of the body can allow the sacrificial electrode to conform to that surface. The surface can be an interior cavity or passage, or part of an external surface. The sacrificial electrode(s) can be designed to be sacrificial and can be removed during step 106. The additive manufacturing of the part, including co-built sacrificial electrode(s), can take place through powder bed fusion or other suitable metallic additive manufacturing processes. An additive manufacturing process can be selected based on, for example, whether both the body of the part and the sacrificial electrode(s) are formed of the same material or are formed of two different materials. For example, the body of the part can be formed of aluminum and the sacrificial electrode(s) can be formed of iron.
In step 104, the sacrificial electrode(s) can be used to electropolish the surface of the body to which each sacrificial electrode is co-built. The electropolishing process chemically smooths the surface of the body by utilizing a difference in electric charge between the surface and the sacrificial electrode(s). Electropolishing requires that an electrode be placed in proximity to the region of the surface which is intended to be smoothed. Co-building the sacrificial electrode(s) with the body allows the electropolishing of areas into which an electrode would not be able to be inserted after the part is built by placing the sacrificial electrode(s) adjacent to the region to be smoothed during the additive manufacturing process. The co-building of the sacrificial electrode(s) with the body of the part in step 102 can increase surface smoothness of the surface to which each sacrificial electrode conforms, which can have the additional benefit of increasing the efficiency of the electropolishing process. The body can be formed of a material which can be electropolished, such as aluminum, stainless steel, titanium, or other suitable materials.
In step 106, the one or more sacrificial electrodes are removed from the body of the part. In one exemplary removal process, the sacrificial electrode(s) can be removed through polarity reversal of the sacrificial electrode(s). In another exemplary removal process, the sacrificial electrode(s) can be removed through selective dissolution of the sacrificial electrode(s).
To remove the sacrificial electrode(s), the polarity of the sacrificial electrode(s) can be reversed such that it becomes the sacrificial anode. This allows the sacrificial electrode(s) to be removed from the part. Reversing the polarity of the sacrificial electrode(s) allows for the dissolution of the sacrificial electrode(s) in a similar manner to the electropolishing of the surface in step 104. Polarity reversal of the sacrificial electrode can be implemented when, for example, the body is formed of the same material as the sacrificial electrode(s).
Alternatively, the sacrificial electrode(s) can be selectively dissolved and thereby removed from the part. This can be performed by, for example, applying a selective dissolution agent which will preferentially attack the sacrificial electrode(s). The sacrificial electrode(s) can be selectively dissolved by applying the selective dissolution agent, which can be an acid or a base. The selective dissolution agent can be selected based on the materials which make up both the body and the sacrificial electrode(s). Selective dissolution of the sacrificial electrode(s) can be implemented when, for example, the body of the part is formed of a different material than the sacrificial electrode(s). For example, if the body of the part is formed of aluminum, and each sacrificial electrode is formed of iron, nitric acid can be used to selectively dissolve the sacrificial electrode(s) without dissolving the body. Conversely, if the body is formed of iron and each sacrificial electrode is formed of aluminum, a base can be used to selectively dissolve the sacrificial electrode(s) without dissolving the body. The application of an acid can also serve to prepare surfaces of the body for additional finishing procedures (described below in step 108).
In step 108, other finishing or processing procedures can be performed on the part. As described above in reference to step 106, the selective dissolution of the sacrificial electrode through the application of an acid can also serve to prepare the surface for the finishing processes in step 108 by creating an activated surface, which is required for certain finishing procedures. These finishing procedures can include, for example, electroplating, anodizing, or other suitable procedures. In step 108, the surface of the part can have a protective coating applied. The part is in a near-finished state in step 108, and the region of the surface which was adjacent to the sacrificial electrode(s) has been smoothed.
Part 200 is additively manufactured through a suitable manufacturing process, as discussed above in reference to
Part 200 as shown in
Part 200 is in the intermediate state, shown in
Body 302 forms the portion of part 300 which will remain in the near-finished state (once sacrificial shell electrode 304 has been removed from surface 306). The shape of body 302 can be determined by the intended use of part 300. In the example depicted in
Part 300 can be manufactured in a similar manner to part 200 (described above in reference to
Body 402 forms the portion of part 400 which will remain in the near-finished state (once sacrificial electrode screen 404 has been removed from surface 406). Body 402 is additively manufactured and comprised of layers (not labeled in the example depicted in
Part 400 can be manufactured in a similar manner to part 200 (described above in reference to
Parts 200, 300, 400 can be configured for use in a variety of contexts within an aircraft. For example, part 200 can be a part of a component which has internal cavities, such as pump housings, generator housings, or gearbox housings. Part 300 can be a part of a component for which a smooth surface finish is desirable, such as an impeller blade. Part 400 can be a part of a component for which a patterned or otherwise varied surface finished is desired, or can be used to electropolish an entire surface using less material than part 300 on a comparable surface.
Part smoothing through the use of a sacrificial electrode co-built in situ with an additively manufactured part provides numerous advantages. Decreasing surface roughness improves the mechanical performance of components and can decrease the fatigue experienced by the components during use. With respect to internal cavities or passages, a smoother surface finish can decrease the turbulence of fluid flow within or through the cavity/passage, and the disclosed method can be used in these areas which are difficult to machine. A smoother surface can make finishing or processing easier and more effective. As compared to insertion of an auxiliary electrode into an already-manufactured part, the method disclosed herein ensures conformality of the sacrificial electrode with the surface to which it is applied, and can therefore achieve more consistent and effective smoothing. This method decreases initial surface roughness and improves the efficiency of electropolishing and other processing methods. For similar reasons, the disclosed method can also achieve better results than would be possible by applying an electrode material applied to an already near-finished part.
The following are non-exclusive descriptions of possible embodiments of the present invention.
An embodiment of an additively manufactured intermediate part includes a body and at least one sacrificial electrode formed within or upon the body. The body has a plurality of layers and at least one surface having a region to be smoothed in a near-finished state of the additively manufactured intermediate part. The at least one sacrificial electrode is adjacent to the body along the at least one surface, such that at least one of the plurality of layers is adjacent to the at least one sacrificial electrode in the region to be smoothed in the near-finished state of the additively manufactured intermediate part.
The additively manufactured intermediate part of the preceding paragraph can optionally include, additionally and/or alternatively, any one or more of the following features, configurations, and/or additional components:
An additively manufactured intermediate part includes a body and at least one sacrificial electrode formed within or upon the body. The body has a plurality of layers and at least one surface having a region to be smoothed in a near-finished state of the additively manufactured intermediate part. The at least one sacrificial electrode is adjacent to the body along the at least one surface, such that at least one of the plurality of layers is adjacent to the at least one sacrificial electrode in the region to be smoothed in the near-finished state of the additively manufactured intermediate part.
A further embodiment of the foregoing additively manufactured intermediate part, wherein the at least one sacrificial electrode is internal to the body.
A further embodiment of any of the foregoing additively manufactured intermediate parts, wherein the at least one sacrificial electrode has a shape which is selected from the group comprising: a straight line, a curved line, and a coil.
A further embodiment of any of the foregoing additively manufactured intermediate parts, wherein the at least one sacrificial electrode comprises a sacrificial shell electrode which conforms to an external surface of the body.
A further embodiment of any of the foregoing additively manufactured intermediate parts, wherein the sacrificial shell electrode covers a portion of the external surface of the body.
A further embodiment of any of the foregoing additively manufactured intermediate parts, wherein the at least one sacrificial electrode comprises a sacrificial electrode screen which conforms to an external surface of the body.
A further embodiment of any of the foregoing additively manufactured intermediate parts, wherein the body and the at least one sacrificial electrode are both formed of a material.
A further embodiment of any of the foregoing additively manufactured intermediate parts, wherein the body is formed of a first material. The at least one sacrificial electrode is formed of a second material which is different than the first material. The second material can be selectively dissolved.
A further embodiment of any of the foregoing additively manufactured intermediate parts, wherein the additively manufactured intermediate part is selected from the group comprising: a pump housing, a gearbox housing, a generator housing, an impeller, and components thereof.
A further embodiment of any of the foregoing additively manufactured intermediate parts, wherein the additively manufactured intermediate part is comprised of a material selected from the group comprising: aluminum, stainless steel, and titanium.
An embodiment of a method of manufacturing a part includes additively manufacturing the part. Additively manufacturing the part includes building a body and building at least one sacrificial electrode within or upon the body. The body comprises a plurality of layers and at least one surface having a region to be smoothed in a near-finished state of the part. The at least one sacrificial electrode is adjacent to the body along the at least one surface such that at least one of the plurality of layers is adjacent to the at least one sacrificial electrode in the region to be smoothed in the near-finished state of the part. The at least one sacrificial electrode is utilized to electrochemically polish the region of the at least one surface of the body. The at least one sacrificial electrode is removed from the body. At least one finishing process is performed on the body.
The additively manufactured intermediate part of the preceding paragraph can optionally include, additionally and/or alternatively, any one or more of the following features, configurations, and/or additional components:
A method of manufacturing a part includes additively manufacturing the part. Additively manufacturing the part includes building a body and building at least one sacrificial electrode within or upon the body. The body comprises a plurality of layers and at least one surface having a region to be smoothed in a near-finished state of the part. The at least one sacrificial electrode is adjacent to the body along the at least one surface such that at least one of the plurality of layers is adjacent to the at least one sacrificial electrode in the region to be smoothed in the near-finished state of the part. The at least one sacrificial electrode is utilized to electrochemically polish the region of the at least one surface of the body. The at least one sacrificial electrode is removed from the body. At least one finishing process is performed on the body.
A further embodiment of the foregoing method, wherein removing the at least one sacrificial electrode comprises selectively dissolving the at least one sacrificial electrode.
A further embodiment of any of the foregoing methods, wherein selectively dissolving the at least one sacrificial electrode comprises applying an acid to the part.
A further embodiment of any of the foregoing methods, wherein the acid is nitric acid.
A further embodiment of any of the foregoing methods, wherein selectively dissolving the at least one sacrificial electrode comprises applying a base to the part.
A further embodiment of any of the foregoing methods, wherein removing the at least one sacrificial electrode comprises reversing the polarity of the at least one sacrificial electrode.
A further embodiment of any of the foregoing methods, wherein additively manufacturing the part comprises using powder bed fusion.
A further embodiment of any of the foregoing methods, wherein removing the at least one sacrificial electrode comprises forming at least one internal cavity within the body.
A further embodiment of any of the foregoing methods, wherein the at least one internal cavity comprises at least one internal passage through the body.
A further embodiment of any of the foregoing methods, further comprising applying a non-conductive layer to the at least one surface of the body.
While the invention has been described with reference to an exemplary embodiment(s), it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes may be made and equivalents may be substituted for elements thereof without departing from the scope of the invention. In addition, many modifications may be made to adapt a particular situation or material to the teachings of the invention without departing from the essential scope thereof. Therefore, it is intended that the invention not be limited to the particular embodiment(s) disclosed, but that the invention will include all embodiments falling within the scope of the appended claims.