A superhard material-containing object is configured to have a controlled and repeatable three-dimensional geometry and/or shape. The object further includes a desired three-dimensional spatial variation in microstructure, grain size and/or composition. The superhard material is selected from the group consisting of diamond, boron-doped diamond and cubic boron nitride. A process for production of a superhard material-containing object from a powder of a superhard material, a binder and an optional additive, includes the steps of: (a) producing a feedstock of the superhard material and a polymer binder; (b) extruding one or more filaments from a granulated superhard material-binder feedstock; (c) preparing a printed superhard material-containing object using the one or more filaments; (d) subjecting the printed object to debinding to prepare a debindered object; and (e) sintering the debindered printed object to produce the superhard material-containing object.

A method for manufacturing a ceramic substrate by a 3D-printing process is described. The method comprises operating a 3D-printer to print a green-state ceramic body having a height extending to spaced apart first and second end surfaces and at least one via extending at least part-way along the height of the green-state ceramic body from the first end surface toward the second end surface. Then, the green-state ceramic body is sintered to provide the ceramic substrate with the at least one via. In cross-section, the at least one via has a square-shaped via with rounded corners.

A method of additively manufacturing a three-dimensional object may be performed using an irradiation sequence that is based at least in part on a predicted location of one or more fume plumes emitted from the powder material when irradiated by a plurality of energy beams. An exemplary method may include determining, with a computing device, an irradiation sequence for selectively consolidating powder material using an energy beam system of an additive manufacturing machine, and providing control commands, from the computing device to the energy beam system, configured to cause the energy beam system to emit a plurality of energy beams to selectively consolidate the powder material.

A method of preparation of a ceramic slurry for use in 3D printing includes steps of: (A) providing a plasticizer and a disperser and mixing the plasticizer and the disperser evenly; (B) mixing the mixture obtained in step (A) with an adhesive, wherein the adhesive is polyvinyl alcohol; and (C) adding a Yttria-stabilized zirconia powder to the mixture obtained in step (B) to produce, by sufficient blending and deaerating, the ceramic slurry for use in 3D printing. A method of preparation of a ceramic product includes steps of: (A) preparing a ceramic slurry with the method; (B) performing 3D printing with the ceramic slurry to form a primary green body; (C) placing the primary green body in a freezer to undergo a refrigeration process, thereby causing crystallization of polyvinyl alcohol; and (D) thawing the frozen primary green body to form a plastic green body with gel structure.

A method may include fused filament fabricating a fused filament fabricated component by delivering a softened filament to selected locations at or adjacent to a build surface. The softened filament may include a binder and a primary material. The binder is configured to release a secondary material upon heating at or above a conversion temperature. The method also may include heating the fused filament fabricated component to a temperature at or above the conversion temperature to sinter the primary material to form a sintered part and cause the binder to release the secondary material within the sintered part.

A method and system of additively-manufacturing a structure having a reinforced access opening includes printing, via an additive printing device having at least one printer head, a portion of the structure adjacent to a support surface. The portion of the structure is printed of a cementitious material, and the printed portion of the structure defines an access opening for the structure. Moreover, the method includes providing a void of the cementitious material at a top boundary of the access opening, placing one or more reinforcement members in the void such that the one or more reinforcement members extend across the void, and continuing to print the printed portion of the structure around the void to build up the structure. Thus, the method also includes backfilling the void with a backfill material to incorporate the one or more reinforcement members within the void into the printed portion of the structure.

The invention relates to an apparatus (10) for producing a three-dimensional workpiece, comprising: a carrier (12) adapted to receive material (14) for producing the workpiece; at least one mobile production unit (24), a moving unit (18) that is adapted to move the mobile production unit (24) relative to the carrier (12) so as to position the mobile production unit (24) oppositely to different sections of the carrier (12); a sensing unit that is adapted to generate sensor signals relating to a relative arrangement of the mobile production unit (24) and the carrier (12); and a control unit that is configured to, in addition to the positioning of the mobile production unit (24) via the moving unit (18), provide at least one fine positioning function to compensate for an offset from a desired relative arrangement of the mobile production unit (24) and the carrier (18) based on the sensor signals generated by the sensing unit. The invention further relates to a method for producing a three-dimensional workpiece.

A method for producing a three-dimensional porous transition alumina catalyst monolith of stacked catalyst fibers, comprising: a) Preparing a paste in a liquid diluent of hydroxide precursor particles and/or oxyhydroxide precursor particles of transition alumina particles, all particles in the suspension having a number average particle size in the range of from 0.05 to 700 μm, b) extruding the paste nozzle(s) to form fibers, and depositing the extruded fibers to form a three-dimensional porous catalyst monolith precursor, c) drying the precursor to remove the liquid diluent, d) performing a temperature treatment of the dried porous catalyst monolith precursor to form the transition alumina catalyst monolith, wherein no temperature treatment of the porous catalyst monolith precursor or porous catalyst monolith at temperatures above 1000° C. is performed and wherein no further catalytically active metals, metal oxides or metal compounds are applied to the surface.

Provided are systems and methods for forming a casing liner in a wellbore of a hydrocarbon well. The forming including disposing a casing liner print head in an annular region located between a casing pipe disposed in a wellbore of a hydrocarbon well and a wall of the wellbore, conducting a downhole lining operation including operating the casing liner print head to eject casing liner integrated structure material into the annular region to form, in the annular region, a casing liner integrated structure including contiguous voids formed in the casing liner integrated structure material, and depositing a cementitious material into the contiguous voids formed in the casing liner material to form, in the annular region, a casing liner including the casing liner integrated structure material and the cementitious material.

The present disclosure provides three-dimensional (3D) printing processes, apparatuses, software, and systems for the production of at least one desired 3D object. The 3D printer system (e.g., comprising a processing chamber, build module, or an unpacking station) described herein may retain a desired (e.g., inert) atmosphere around the material bed and/or 3D object at multiple 3D printing stages. The 3D printer described herein comprises one or more build modules that may have a controller separate from the controller of the processing chamber. The 3D printer described herein comprises a platform that may be automatically constructed. The invention(s) described herein may allow the 3D printing process to occur for a long time without operator intervention and/or down time.