LinkedIn·Friday, 21 August 2026·4d ago
What if the second laser on your LPBF machine isn’t just a speed tool? Researchers at KU Leuven have demonstrated how a second trailing…
Materialise
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What if the second laser on your LPBF machine isn’t just a speed tool?
Researchers at KU Leuven have demonstrated how a second trailing laser can be used to engineer microstructure within a single printed part during the build, without post-build heat treatment.
By controlling the thermal exposure from the second laser, the researchers varied the austenite content from 0% to 48% and achieved a near-balanced duplex microstructure directly in the LPBF process.
Making this possible required precise coordination of the two lasers, controlling which laser fires, at what power, and in what sequence. Materialise Control Platform and Build Processor SDK enabled the custom dual-laser strategies used in the research, making it possible to treat the second laser not as a productivity tool, but as a way to influence how materials form during the build.
This reframes multi-laser LPBF. Achieving the right microstructure can reduce or even eliminate post-processing, saving time and costs while eliminating issues like distortion. It also creates new possibilities for designing microstructure and, ultimately, material properties within a part.
Read more in this article where our research manager Michele Pavan shares his insights about the research and what it means for the AM industry: https://mtls.am/3U4uu8V
#MetalAM #LPBF #DualLaser #AdditiveManufacturing
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