SFF of Ceramic Parts: Literature Overview and Direct Experiments

Abstract

ABSTRACTThe great development of Solid Freeform Fabrication (SFF) techniques from their introduction into the market, more than 20 years ago, has fueled their diffusion in the mechanical sector to the point that they are today an indispensable component of the process of designing, engineering and producing a mechanical parts.At the same time, these techniques found application in different and even distant sectors, like biomedicine or architecture. This lead to the necessity of developing SFF processes suitable for materials different from those they were at the beginning thought for. Such techniques, taken from the original ones or entirely developed ex-novo, allowed for a surprising differentiation of the applications.The fabrication of ceramic parts by SFF techniques is a relatively new field which is widening the role of such materials in sectors not traditionally covered.The present paper reports a state of the art of the techniques that appear more effective for the production of ceramic goods, with representative or even functional properties.Further, some results of 3D Printing experiments of alumina parts will be presented.