US lab plans dual-material 3D printing to boost aircraft, energy tech

Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), in partnership with JuggerBot 3D, is developing a novel dual-material 3D printing system capable of processing both thermoplastic and thermoset polymers in a single manufacturing process. This hybrid approach aims to combine the flexibility and ease of thermoplastics with the superior thermal and chemical resistance of thermosets, enabling the production of complex parts with varied material properties. The project builds on prior work that improved large-format thermoplastic printing by refining ORNL’s open-source slicing software and integrating a laser-based real-time calibration system, which enhanced print consistency and reduced the need for post-processing. A significant advancement from the initial collaboration was the automation of material setup through a “Material Card” database, which stores process parameters for different materials. This innovation, paired with ORNL’s Slicer 2 software and calibration technology, streamlines operations by eliminating the need for repeated calibration when switching materials, saving considerable time. The current focus is on adapting this framework to