Much of Jasmin Saewe’s research work is aimed at expanding the range of materials available for use in additive manufacturing (AM).
“Some say there are already enough materials in AM, however if you look at the numbers, I would say that in conventional manufacturing there are still several factors more materials available to select from,” she said in a recent webinar.
Particularly targeting wear-resistant, high-strength steels, her research involved using preheating systems during the laser powder bed fusion process to circumvent the formation of cracks. Results were assessed at the microstructure level using a range of techniques such as light optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy and electron backscatter diffraction.
In 2021, Saewe became the head of the ILT’s LPBF department, which through numerous projects strives to optimise the productivity and reliability of LPBF systems. In addition to developing multi-laser machines with innovative scanning strategies, adaptive process control and arrays of advanced sensor systems, the department is also heavily involved in adapting the LPBF digital process chain, both in preparing the manufacturing data while making it more understandable for LPBF machines via cutting-edge machine learning techniques.
Organisation: Fraunhofer ILT
Role: Head of Laser Powder Bed Fusion
Based in: Aachen, Germany
Education: PhD Mechanical Engineering, Aachen University