Binder jetting 3D printing of green TiC-FeCr based cermets- effect of sintering temperature and systematic comparison study with laser powder bed fusion fabricated parts

Maurya, H. S. (author), Marczyk, J. (author), Juhani, K. (author), Sergejev, F. (author), Kumar, Rahul (author), Hussain, A. (author), Akhtar, Farid (author), Hebda, M. (author), Prashanth, Konda Gokuldoss (author)

The advancement of modern 3D printing technologies has opened the possibilities to fabricate different spectrums of materials using these technologies. Binder jetting 3D printing is a shaping-debinding-sintering-based Additive manufacturing process that selectively fabricates the parts in a layer-by-layer fashion using the local imprinting of polymeric binder. This study aims to develop cobalt and nickel-free TiC-FeCr-based cermets that will contribute to the development of cermets towards green and cost-efficient materials. An effective approach to increase the densities of printed parts was to replace unimodal powder feedstocks with bimodal powders. Therefore, this work employed bimodal spherical powder (TiC and 430L ferritic stainless steel) to promote better densification of the cermet parts. Liquid phase vacuum sintering has been performed with different sintering temperatures to consolidate the cermet parts. Detailed analyses of the microstructure evolution, phase formation, and mechanical properties (hardness and fracture toughness) have been conducted. Further, thermodynamic simulations were conducted to calculate the phase diagram of the proposed cermet using the Thermo-Calc program. Microstructural analysis of consolidated cermets reveals a direct correlation between sintering temperature and carbide grain size, affecting their mechanical and physical properties. The best hardness and fracture toughness properties of TiC-FeCr-based cermets are 1102 ± 13 HV▫$_{30}$▫ and 12.74 ± 1.38 MPa m▫$^{1/2}$▫ respectively, were obtained after sintering at 1450 °C. Moreover, a systematic comparison is conducted with the same cermet composition fabricated with different additive manufacturing processes based on Laser powder bed fusion and Binder jetting 3D printing technology, demonstrating the potential and limitations of both technologies to fabricate brittle materials such as cermets.

• Language: English
• Keywords: TiC-Fe-based cermets, binder jetting, liquid phase sintering, microstructures, laser powder bed fusion
• Work type: Article
• Typology: 1.01 - Original Scientific Article
• Organization: FS - Faculty of Mechanical Engineering
• Publication status: Published
• Publication version: Version of Record
• Year: 2025
• Number of pages: 14 str.
• Numbering: Vol. 25, art. 100562
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-180675
• UDC: 678.026.3:621.762
• ISSN on article: 2590-0498
• DOI: 10.1016/j.mtadv.2025.100562
• COBISS.SI-ID: 271597571
• Publication date in RUL: 13.03.2026

Record is a part of a journal

• Title: Materials today advances
• Publisher: Elsevier Ltd.
• ISSN: 2590-0498
• COBISS.SI-ID: 529861401

Licences

• License: CC BY 4.0, Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
• Link: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
• Description: This is the standard Creative Commons license that gives others maximum freedom to do what they want with the work as long as they credit the author.

Secondary language

• Language: Slovenian
• Keywords: kermeti na osnovi TiC-Fe, brizganje veziva, sintranje v tekoči fazi, mikrostrukture, selektivno lasersko taljenje

Projects

• Funder: Other - Other funder or multiple funders
• Funding programme: Estonian Research Council
• Project number: PRG1145
• Name: Composites ‘ceramic-Fe-alloy’ for a wide range of application conditions