The research objective of the award is to apply the principles of cold sintering for the freeform fabrication of diamond microtools and determine quantitative relationships among aspect ratio, surface roughness, edge radius and sintering parameters. The approach consists of employing laser-induced shock waves to mechanically sinter nanodiamond powders through layer-by-layer additive manufacturing and utilizing multiscale physics models to validate the experimental data. Three-dimensional microparts in various freeform geometries will be fabricated with a post-finishing treatment by the femtosecond pulsed laser for close tolerance, smooth finish and precise geometry.
The broader impacts include a reduction in the manufacturing cost, easy availability and enhanced performance of diamond microtools. An additional benefit is the capability to build multifunctional materials for tailoring the required properties. Research will facilitate the industry adoption of the new manufacturing process to address the productivity and quality issues associated with diamond microtools. Education and outreach outcomes include training of women and minority graduate students in advanced manufacturing field, incorporation of the research data into manufacturing courses, undergraduates research training by involving them in the research team, dissemination of the research results through journal publications, conferences, industry visits and workshops, and creation of a website to report results of the new additive manufacturing system.
