Slurry-based additive manufacturing of ceramic parts by selective laser burn-out

This study proposes a novel process of slurry-based additive manufacturing of ceramic parts by selective laser burn-out (SLB). The process employs the slurry layer to replace the sheet material used in the process of laminated object manufacturing (LOM) and computer-aided manufacturing of laminated engineering materials (CAM-LEM). A part of binder and solution in the fresh slurry layer permeated into the dried green layers to achieve a good binding strength; then the green part was build with laser irradiation to burn out binder. Two scanning modes were used; the outline scanning traced out the outline of the predefined part slice geometry, and cutting scanning facilitated removal of excess material. Consequently, the new process benefits the fabrication of the large parts as LOM and CAM-LEM possessing. Many accessory facilities used in LOM and CAM-LEM are not required. The feasibility of the new process is verified through the fabrication of the alumina parts.