The United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA) has begun
using two additive manufacturing – or 3D printing – machines that
use complementary methods to manufacture components for future
fusion machines.
At its recently opened Central Support Facility (CSF), UKAEA has
commissioned an electron beam additive manufacturing machine that
will mainly be used to incorporate tungsten into components,
alongside a selective laser manufacturing machine.
Fusion can play a key role in a global low carbon energy future.
However, the components within future fusion power plants will
have to operate under complex and challenging conditions,
including extreme temperatures, high neutron loads, and strong
magnetic fields. As a result, they require complex combinations
of materials and precision engineering.
Additive manufacturing is well suited to producing materials with
intricate designs, and in low volumes, making it ideal for a
sector such as fusion, where – for the near future – each fusion
machine will be highly individual and require bespoke components.
As a result, UKAEA believes that 3D printing can play an
important role in the future of fusion reducing the costs of this
precision manufacturing, and has commissioned the machines to
demonstrate two complementary 3D printing methods to produce
fusion components.
The eMELT Electron Beam Powder Bed Fusion (E-PBF) additive
machine, made by Freemelt, will use electron beam technology to
join tungsten in powder-form into solid components with almost
100 percent density. The eMELTmachine will be used to layer
tungsten onto other materials such as copper chrome zirconium,
stainless steel and Eurofer 97, a special type of steel developed
for use in fusion machines.
The SLM280 – Selective Laser Manufacturing – will be used to
experiment with how to produce components with the complex
geometries and material combinations that will be essential for
successful fusion plants. The SLM280 is manufactured by Nikon
SLM, provided by Kingsbury Machine Tools, supported by Additure.
Both 3D printing technologies will support the manufacture of
plasma-facing components that will be exposed to extreme
temperatures during their operational lifecycle. The machines
will also reduce the reliance on traditional techniques such as
welding, reducing the number of manufacturing operations and
joining processes.
Roy Marshall, Head of Operations for Fabrication, Installation
and Maintenance, at UKAEA said:
Future fusion power plants will require thousands – or even
millions – of components with complex geometries that can
withstand the extreme conditions of a fusion environment.
UKAEA believes that additive manufacturing will be essential to
developing these components at a scale that makes fusion
commercially viable.
We have commissioned two complementary additive manufacturing
machines so we can demonstrate that fusion components can be
printed at a production scale, enabling the fusion industry to
develop components at our facilities that would otherwise be
commercially prohibitive.
Using these machines will enable parts and geometries to be
produced more efficiently than by using traditional fabrication
methods.
Many companies will have either an electron beam machine or
selective laser manufacturing technology but having both
capabilities under one roof – and able to produce components at
scale – is a first for the fusion industry.
Viktor Valk, Regional Manager, EMEA at Freemelt said:
We are honoured to support UKAEA in their important work to
advance fusion energy as a commercially viable energy source. The
use of Freemelt's industrial machine eMELT to produce tungsten
plasma-facing components exposed to extreme conditions in fusion
energy machines, marks an important step in applying our E-PBF
technology to fusion energy development.
Christoph Barefoot, Regional Business Director UK & Nordics,
Nikon SLM Solutions, said:
Fusion represents the future of energy – but it can only be
realized through bold innovation and trusted collaboration. At
Nikon SLM Solutions, we are proud to support UKAEA's mission with
our industry-leading Selective Laser Melting technology, helping
make complex, high-performance fusion components not just
possible, but scalable. With this milestone, we move one step
closer to commercial fusion – and a more sustainable tomorrow.
The CSF brings together this technology with purpose-built
workshops into one building – alongside UKAEA's Manufacturing
Support Team and Special Techniques Group – to enable
collaboration between manufacturing teams and to support fusion
research and development. UKAEA is now working to prepare
commercial partners for the large scale production that is
essential for the fusion energy plants of the future.
Both machines will now start the work of producing challenging
geometries and undertake experiments exploring the properties of
additive manufactured materials. This work will be followed by
initial stages of manufacturing involving tungsten and copper
chrome zirconium layering.
