Pitt Receives Grant to Study 3D Printing

July 16, 2018

The University of Pittsburgh’s Swanson School of Engineering has been awarded $1 million to study and advance the design and manufacture of 3D-printed nuclear components. The award is part of the United States Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Nuclear Energy’s Nuclear Energy Enabling Technologies (NEET) program.

The research will involve the development of dissolvable supports, as well as greater topology optimization (the way in which parts are interrelated or arranged) and improved microstructure design to fabricate nuclear components with minimal distortion and greater structural integrity at lower costs.

The research will be directed by Albert To, associate professor of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science (MEMS) at the Swanson School. Co-investigators include Wei Xiong, assistant professor of MEMS at Pitt, and Owen Hildreth, assistant professor of mechanical engineering at the Colorado School of Mines. Corporate collaborators in Pittsburgh include Curtiss-Wright, a mechanical contracting corporation and Jason Goldsmith at Kennametal Inc., a supplier of tooling and industrial materials.

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Technologies: Applications