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Credit: Peter the Great St.Petersburg Polytechnic University
Researchers from Peter the Great St.Petersburg Polytechnic University (SPbPU) developed and manufactured a unique 3D printer named the "Prism". The 3D-printer was manufactured and firstly demonstrated on January 29, 2021. The main purpose of the developed printer is to print structures made of titanium, an expensive material, but essential for various industries due to its strength properties and low specific weight. The printing system is located in a chamber with an inert atmosphere. This printer may also be used to print products made of steel, aluminum, magnesium, nickel alloys. The researchers used the wire as a raw material to ensures the high productivity of the process. The layer-by-layer deposition is performed in the 3D printer, in which the wire is melted due to the burning of an electric arc. In developed printer two wires can be fed simultaneously to increase productivity and to synthesize new alloy or gradient structures from two dissimilar wires.