The base idea

3D Metal Printing – the patented electron beam Additive Manufacturing technology which employs the best technical features and technological capabilities of the gas-discharge EB guns to solve numerous problems of existing AM technologies.

• Hollow conical electron beam is used for creation of molten pool on the substrate and for melting of feedstock material - Wire is fully enveloped by coaxial precisely regulated energy flow with gradually distributing power concentration;
• Coaxial feeding of the wire inside conical electron beam providing exclusively uniform preheating, melting and deposition conditions with only a few key process parameters which are easy controllable;
• Continuous transfer of liquid metal to the substrate reliably maintained by the “bridge” of surface tension forces

Exclusive technological capabilities

Good deposition repeatability

Low residual distortions of the
substrate plate after deposition

Good accuracy and straightness,
no tapering appearance
(wall thickness from 1.5 mm,
surface roughness <1mm)

Macrostructure, Ti-6Al-4V.

• Typical casting structure with quite small practically equiaxed grains – excellent controlability of deposition parameters and high cooling rate prevent formation of rough column structure

• Uniformly distributed orientation of practically equiaxed grains within a single bead was demonstrated – guarantee of properties uniformity of single-bead xBeam printed structures

Small heat affected zone with gradual change of structure – low influence on the base material

Mechanical properties, Ti-6Al-4V

• Basic mechanical properties (tensile strength, yield strength, elongation, reduction of area as well) of the metal produced by xBeam 3D Metal Printing meet the requirements most of actual industrial standards for Ti-6Al-4V;
• Mechanical properties of thin walls produced by single-bead strategy are more uniform than of thicker walls produced by multi-bead strategy, probably thanks to more uniform macro-structure in all directions.

Ductile fracture with small
equiaxed pits 1-10 μm

Pilot installation