Sandvik creates first 3D printed diamond composite
Sandvik Additive Manufacturing has created the first ever 3D printed diamond composite. While this diamond does not sparkle, it is perfect for a wide range of industrial uses. This super-hard material can be 3D printed in highly complex shapes and can revolutionize the way industry uses the hardest natural material on the planet.
Diamond is harder than anything else in nature. It is a key component in a large range of wear resistant tools in industry, from mining and drilling to machining and also medical implants. Since 1953 it has been possible to produce synthetic diamond, but since it’s so hard and complicated to machine, it is almost impossible to form complex shapes.
By using additive manufacturing, Sandvik has managed to 3D-print diamond composites which can be formed in almost any shape. This opens the possibility of using it in applications that were previously considered impossible.
“We now have the ability to create strong diamond composites in very complex shapes through additive manufacturing, which fundamentally will change the way industries will be able to use this material. As of now, the only limit to how this super-hard material can be shaped and used is down to the designer’s imagination,” says Mikael Schuisky, Head of R&D and Operations at Sandvik Additive Manufacturing.
The difference between Sandvik’s diamond and natural or synthetic diamond is that Sandvik’s is a composite material. Most of the material is diamond, but to make it printable and dense it needs to be cemented in a very hard matrix material, keeping the most important physical properties of pure diamond.
“Sandvik’s 3D printed diamond composite is a true innovation. It means that we can begin to use diamond in applications and shapes never conceived possible before,” said Susanne Norgren, Adjunct Professor in Applied Materials Science at Uppsala University. “Just imagine what it could do to industries, when it is possible to print anything, in any shape – in diamond.”
The diamond composite has been tested and found to have extremely high hardness, exceptional heat conductivity, while also possessing low density, very good thermal expansion and fantastic corrosion resistance. It was unveiled at the RAPID + TCT show in Detroit May 21 – 23, 2019, North America’s leading event for Additive Manufacturing.
Video
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University of Canterbury showcasing innovation at SouthMACH
A world first! 3D printed titanium internal combustion engine, designed and created by the University of Canterbury for the Shell Eco-Marathon car.
The University of Canterbury will be at SouthMach in the Innovation Quarter (stand 169). Come talk to UC’s academic and research staff and see innovation in action.
The Shell Eco-Marathon car, which was raced in Singapore in 2018 as part of a global student competition, will be on display at SouthMach.
The Shell Eco-marathon challenges student teams around the world to design, build, test and drive ultra-energy-efficient vehicles. In March 2018, the Eco-marathon student team came home from Singapore triumphant, after beating more than 100 teams from 21 countries at the Shell Eco-marathon Asia 2018 event by winning the Technical Innovation Award.
The team also unveiled a world first – a 3D-printed titanium internal combustion engine. The 3D printed engine will also be on display at the event for visitors to see up close.
Associate Professor Don Clucas will also be giving a seminar on Thursday 23 May. This presentation will highlight some of our 3D Printing successes and where we think the technology is heading, as well as how companies can work with us and our students.
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Portable 3D scanner on show at Southmach 2019
SOUTHMACH exhibitor, Professional CAD Systems Ltd are showing their new
HandySCAN3d a truly portable metrology grade 3D scanner on their stand at Southmach 2019 which opened in Christchurch today.
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Lilium reveals new air taxi as it celebrates maiden flight
Munich 16 May 2019: Lilium, the Munich-based startup developing a revolutionary on- demand air taxi service, today revealed its new five-seater air taxi prototype for the first time. The unveiling of the new Lilium Jet came as the all-electric aircraft completed its maiden flight in the skies over Germany earlier this month.
The full-scale, full-weight prototype is powered by 36 all-electric jet engines that allow it to take-off and land vertically, while achieving remarkably efficient horizontal, or cruise, flight. The simplicity of the aircraft design, with no tail, no rudder, no propellers, no gearbox and only one moving part in the engine not only contributes to the safety and affordability of the aircraft, but it has also allowed the design team to focus their efforts on creating a magical customer experience in the cabin, from panoramic windows to gull-wing doors.
Celebrating the landmark, Daniel Wiegand, co-founder and CEO, said: “Today we are taking another huge step towards making urban air mobility a reality. In less than two years we have been able to design, build and successfully fly an aircraft that will serve as our template for mass production. Moving from two to five seats was always our ambition as it enables us to open up the skies to many more travelers. Whether its friends or families flying together or business travelers ride-sharing into the city, having five seats delivers an economy of scale you just can’t achieve with two. The Lilium Jet itself is beautiful and we were thrilled to see it take to the skies for the first time. With the perfect balance of range and speed, our aircraft has the potential to positively impact the way people choose to live and travel, all over the world.”
With a top speed of 300 km/h and a range of 300km, the Lilium Jet is capable of completing much longer journeys than the majority of its competitors. This is, in part, thanks to the fixed wing design of the aircraft. While drone-based aircraft consume much of their energy keep- ing an aircraft in the air, the Lilium Jet can rely on the lift generated by the fixed wing to do this, meaning it will require less than ten percent of its maximum 2000 horsepower during cruise flight. This efficiency, which is comparable to the energy usage of an electric car over the same distance, means the aircraft would not just be capable of connecting suburbs to city centers and airports to main train stations, but would also deliver affordable high-speed connections across entire regions.
The Lilium Jet first took to the air at 08.03 local time on 4th May 2019, having completed extensive ground testing at Lilium’s HQ in Munich, Germany. The prototype aircraft, which is controlled remotely from the ground, has since begun a rigorous flight test campaign that will prove its capability and lay the foundations for certification of the aircraft to safety standards comparable to those of large commercial aircraft.
Commenting on the successful first flight, Leandro Bigarella, Head of Flight Test, said: “While a maiden flight is always a moment of truth for a business, the Lilium Jet performed exactly as expected and responded well to our inputs. Our flight test program will now continue with increasingly complex maneuvers as we look towards our next big goal of achieving transition flight, which is when the aircraft moves seamlessly from vertical to horizontal flight.”
Lilium plans to manufacture and operate the Lilium Jet as part of a revolutionary on-demand air taxi service. At the push of a button, passengers will be able to use the Lilium app to locate their nearest landing pad and plan their journey with ease. Choosing from a network of pads across cities and regions, passengers will enjoy journeys that are comparable in price with a taxi, yet four times faster. Lilium expects to be fully-operational in various cities around the world by 2025, although trial services will start earlier than this in several locations.
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NASA Seeks US Partners to Develop Reusable Systems to Land Astronauts on Moon
Artist’s concept of a human landing system and its crew on the lunar surface with Earth near the horizon.
Credits: NASA
As the next major step to return astronauts to the Moon under Space Policy Directive-1, NASA announced plans on Dec. 13 to work with American companies to design and develop new reusable systems for astronauts to land on the lunar surface. The agency is planning to test new human-class landers on the Moon beginning in 2024, with the goal of sending crew to the surface in 2028.
Through multi-phased lunar exploration partnerships, NASA is asking American companies to study the best approach to landing astronauts on the Moon and start the development as quickly as possible with current and future anticipated technologies.
“Building on our model in low-Earth orbit, we’ll expand our partnerships with industry and other nations to explore the Moon and advance our missions to farther destinations such as Mars, with America leading the way,” said NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine. “When we send astronauts to the surface of the Moon in the next decade, it will be in a sustainable fashion.”
The agency’s leading approach to sending humans to the Moon is using a system of three separate elements that will provide transfer, landing, and safe return. A key aspect of this proposed approach is to use the Gateway for roundtrip journeys to and from the surface of the Moon.
Using the Gateway to land astronauts on the Moon allows the first building blocks for fully reusable lunar landers. Initially NASA expects two of the lander elements to be reusable and refueled by cargo ships carrying fuel from Earth to the Gateway. The agency is also working on technologies to make rocket propellants using water ice and regolith from the Moon. Once the ability to harness resources from the Moon for propellant becomes viable, NASA plans to refuel these elements with the Moon’s own resources. This process, known as in-situ resource utilization or ISRU, will make the third element also refuelable and reusable.
NASA published a formal request for proposals to an appendix of the second Next Space Technologies for Exploration Partnerships (NextSTEP-2) Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) on Feb. 7, and responses are due March 25.
According to the solicitation, NASA will fund industry-led development and flight demonstrations of lunar landers built for astronauts by supporting critical studies and risk reduction activities to advance technology requirements, tailor applicable standards, develop technology, and perform initial demonstrations by landing on the Moon.
When NASA again sends humans to the Moon, the surface will be buzzing with new research and robotic activity, and there will be more opportunities for discovery than ever before. Private sector innovation is key to these NASA missions, and the NextSTEP public-private partnership model is advancing capabilities for human spaceflight while stimulating commercial activities in space.
The President’s direction from Space Policy Directive-1 galvanizes NASA’s return to the Moon and builds on progress on the Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft, efforts with commercial and international partners, and knowledge gained from current robotic presence at the Moon and Mars.
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Sir James Dyson is looking for young inventors who are tackling big problems in ingenious ways
This year marks the 15th anniversary of the James Dyson Award, and the 15th year of empowering the next generation of engineers to solve the problems that will impact their future.
The James Dyson Foundation is challenging innovative and entrepreneurial students and recent graduates to design something that solves a problem. Ingenuity can be found anywhere. We want to support as many young inventors as we can. James Dyson says: “Young engineers and designers have perspective and unbridled intelligence that makes them incredibly adept at problem solving. Their ideas can easily be dismissed, but if nurtured and celebrated they are transformative. Developing a product or technology is a long and daunting process; the James Dyson Award celebrates the inventive young people embarking on that process. The Award champions our next generation of inventors and will propel them towards future success. I am excited to see what surprising ideas this year’s award brings.”
Past winners have sought to address food waste, water conservation, pollution, medical treatment in developing countries and sustainability across all industries.
The 2018 International Winner, O-Wind Turbine (pictured), addresses sustainable energy generation in urban environments with a new type of wind turbine that captures wind flowing in every direction.
The competition brief: design something that solves a problem. This problem may be a frustration we all face in daily life, or a global issue. The important thing is that the solution is effective and demonstrates considered design thinking.
The prize is NZ$ 55,000* (plus NZ$9,000 for the winner’s university), two international runners-up receive NZ $9,000 and each national winner receives NZ$3,500).
The process: entries are judged first at the national level – before progressing to the international stage. A panel of Dyson engineers select an international shortlist of 20 entries. The Top 20 projects are then reviewed by Sir James Dyson, who selects the international winner.
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New fuel cell technology runs on solid carbon.
Caption: Research scientist Dong Ding is developing direct carbon fuel cells at INL’s Energy Innovation Laboratory. Credit: Idaho National Laboratory
ADVANCEMENTS IN A FUEL CELL TECHNOLOGY POWERED BY SOLID CARBON COULD MAKE ELECTRICITY GENERATION FROM COAL AND BIOMASS CLEANER AND MORE EFFICIENT. INNOVATIONS IN THE ANODE, THE ELECTROLYTE AND THE FUEL ALLOW THE FUEL CELL TO UTILISE MORE CARBON, OPERATE AT LOWER TEMPERATURES AND SHOW HIGHER MAXIMUM POWER DENSITIES THAN EARLIER DIRECT CARBON FUEL CELLS (DCFCS).
Advancements in a fuel cell technology powered by solid carbon could make electricity generation from resources such as coal and biomass cleaner and more efficient, according to a new paper published by Idaho National Laboratory researchers.
The fuel cell design incorporates innovations in three components: the anode, the electrolyte and the fuel. Together, these advancements allow the fuel cell to utilise about three times as much carbon as earlier direct carbon fuel cell (DCFC) designs.
The fuel cells also operate at lower temperatures and showed higher maximum power densities than earlier DCFCs, according to INL materials engineer Dong Ding.
Whereas hydrogen fuel cells (eg, proton exchange membrane (PEM) and other fuel cells) generate electricity from the chemical reaction between pure hydrogen and oxygen, DCFCs can use any number of carbon-based resources for fuel, including coal, coke, tar, biomass and organic waste.
Because DCFCs make use of readily available fuels, they are potentially more efficient than conventional hydrogen fuel cells. “You can skip the energy-intensive step of producing hydrogen,” Ding says.
But earlier DCFC designs have several drawbacks: they require high temperatures – 700 to 900 degrees Celsius – which makes them less efficient and less durable. Further, as a consequence of those high temperatures, they’re typically constructed of expensive materials that can handle the heat.
Also, early DCFC designs aren’t able to effectively utilise the carbon fuel.
Ding and his colleagues addressed these challenges by designing a true direct carbon fuel cell that’s capable of operating at lower temperatures – below 600 degrees Celsius. The fuel cell makes use of solid carbon, which is finely ground and injected via an airstream into the cell. The researchers tackled the need for high temperatures by developing an electrolyte using highly conductive materials – doped cerium oxide and carbonate. These materials maintain their performance under lower temperatures.
Next, they increased carbon utilisation by developing a 3-D ceramic textile anode design that interlaces bundles of fibres together like a piece of cloth. The fibres themselves are hollow and porous. All of these features combine to maximise the amount of surface area that’s available for a chemical reaction with the carbon fuel.
Finally, the researchers developed a composite fuel made from solid carbon and carbonate. “At the operating temperature, that composite is fluidlike,” Ding says. “It can easily flow into the interface.”
The molten carbonate carries the solid carbon into the hollow fibres and the pinholes of the anode, increasing the power density of the fuel cell.
The resulting fuel cell looks like a green, ceramic watch battery that’s about as thick as a piece of construction paper. A larger square is 10 centimetres on each side. The fuel cells can be stacked on top of one another depending on the application.
The technology has the potential for improved utilisation of carbon fuels, such as coal and biomass, because direct carbon fuel cells produce carbon dioxide without the mixture of other gases and particulates found in smoke from coal-fired power plants, for example. This makes it easier to implement carbon capture technologies, Ding says.
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Manufacturing is Back, and More Intelligent Than Ever- But Are We Reaping the Benefits Yet?
Terri Hiskey, Vice President of Product Marketing for Manufacturing at Epicor Software
Look around, and the manufacturing industry is brimming with examples of firms that are bringing the latest technological developments to their factory floors. Their goal? To improve processes, increase automation levels, and facilitate future business growth.
A case in point is the manufacturing giant Siemens, which has used automation to reduce the rollout time of new products by a third. Another example is global autoparts manufacturer Hirotec, which has used cloud-based analytics and IoT to reduce system inspection times by 100 percent—a move that has helped the company avoid a painful $361 per-second bill for downtime during manual inspections.
Inspiring innovation
It’s outcomes such as these that are inspiring other manufacturers to implement Internet of Things (IoT) technologies into their production environments. In fact, according to recent research from Epicor, 69 percent of manufacturers believe their industry is on the verge of large scale IoT adoption or is at least at an experimental level.
All this indicates the sector is entering an exciting period of change, where manufacturers seize on digital innovation and transformation opportunities. Indeed, the same Epicor research shows us that manufacturers are increasingly embracing technology. 79 percent already have sensors on their machines, and 42 percent are using IoT technology to control and work with robots. In addition to making manufacturers more agile and more responsive, such technologies can also enable smaller firms to compete against much larger players, as Epicor customer SouthCo has shown.
Like many emerging trends, willingness to adopt and get to grips with IoT varies across geographic regions. Despite the hype, a surprising 44 percent of global manufacturers have still either never heard of IoT or know little about it. This rises to 57 percent in EMEA, where the pace of adoption is much lower compared to Asia Pacific, where the thirst for new technology is much higher. Just 27 percent of manufacturers in APAC are unaware or poorly informed about IoT.
Counting the gains
However, where IoT is put to work—with production robots that can send and receive data, or perhaps the use of RFID technology to connect shipments with factory equipment—not every manufacturer is finding it easy to measure the gains enabled by these technology implementations.
Research tells us that IoT technology itself can be challenging to implement, and that its impact can be hard to quantify. In fact, around three-quarters (72 percent) of manufacturers surveyed by Epicor in the research above, say they are yet to measure any real return on their IoT investments to date.
This, it seems, is the harsh reality of IoT. Yes, connected technology is putting the spotlight back on manufacturing. Yes, it’s making the factories of the future possible, today. And yes, there are outstanding examples of manufacturers transforming their operations as a result. Yet many firms within the manufacturing community are struggling to justify their spend on all of this new technology.
IoT and ERP—the perfect pairing
By default, the IoT involves capturing a huge amount of data—from the production line through to the wider supply chain. If the IoT is to truly bring value to an organization, this data needs to be captured and analyzed via an effective enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution. Afterall, a return-on-investment figure can’t be calculated if outcomes cannot be measured.
Using ERP technology alongside IoT solutions is becoming increasingly accepted among manufacturers as a way of addressing this particular challenge. Many are starting to recognize the importance of placing an ERP system at the heart of their smart factories because it means that centralized monitoring becomes possible, accurate data can be collected, informed decisions can be made, and improvements can be measured.
As we move further into 2019, we can expect to see switched-on manufacturers continue to shift towards using intelligent cloud-based ERP solutions to justify their IoT investments. This will enable them to continue to take advantage of new opportunities, to optimize processes, and to remain agile. All through the powerful combination of IoT and ERP.
Manufacturing is certainly back—gone are the days of dirty or dingy factories. Gone is the high use of manual labour and blue screens. Instead, we are entering an Industry 4.0 world where manufacturing is increasingly digital. In this world, ERP software combined with smart factory technology will be the perfect pairing.
To find out more about how you can use ERP to measure the ROI from your IoT investments, get in touch via the Epicor website. If you’d like to benchmark your tech investments and subsequent business growth levels against other manufacturers in your region, view the Global Growth Index.
The research was conducted by Morar Consulting on behalf of Epicor in December 2017. The research questioned 2,200 manufacturing business decision makers and employees in businesses in 14 countries across the globe.
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Manufacturing is Back, and More Intelligent Than Ever—But Are We Reaping the Benefits Yet?
Terri Hiskey, Vice President of Product Marketing for Manufacturing at Epicor Software
Look around, and the manufacturing industry is brimming with examples of firms that are bringing the latest technological developments to their factory floors. Their goal? To improve processes, increase automation levels, and facilitate future business growth.
A case in point is the manufacturing giant Siemens, which has used automation to reduce the rollout time of new products by a third. Another example is global autoparts manufacturer Hirotec, which has used cloud-based analytics and IoT to reduce system inspection times by 100 percent—a move that has helped the company avoid a painful $361 per-second bill for downtime during manual inspections.
Inspiring innovation
It’s outcomes such as these that are inspiring other manufacturers to implement Internet of Things (IoT) technologies into their production environments. In fact, according to recent research from Epicor, 69 percent of manufacturers believe their industry is on the verge of large scale IoT adoption or is at least at an experimental level.
All this indicates the sector is entering an exciting period of change, where manufacturers seize on digital innovation and transformation opportunities. Indeed, the same Epicor research shows us that manufacturers are increasingly embracing technology. 79 percent already have sensors on their machines, and 42 percent are using IoT technology to control and work with robots. In addition to making manufacturers more agile and more responsive, such technologies can also enable smaller firms to compete against much larger players, as Epicor customer SouthCo has shown.
Like many emerging trends, willingness to adopt and get to grips with IoT varies across geographic regions. Despite the hype, a surprising 44 percent of global manufacturers have still either never heard of IoT or know little about it. This rises to 57 percent in EMEA, where the pace of adoption is much lower compared to Asia Pacific, where the thirst for new technology is much higher. Just 27 percent of manufacturers in APAC are unaware or poorly informed about IoT.
Counting the gains
However, where IoT is put to work—with production robots that can send and receive data, or perhaps the use of RFID technology to connect shipments with factory equipment—not every manufacturer is finding it easy to measure the gains enabled by these technology implementations.
Research tells us that IoT technology itself can be challenging to implement, and that its impact can be hard to quantify. In fact, around three-quarters (72 percent) of manufacturers surveyed by Epicor in the research above, say they are yet to measure any real return on their IoT investments to date.
This, it seems, is the harsh reality of IoT. Yes, connected technology is putting the spotlight back on manufacturing. Yes, it’s making the factories of the future possible, today. And yes, there are outstanding examples of manufacturers transforming their operations as a result. Yet many firms within the manufacturing community are struggling to justify their spend on all of this new technology.
IoT and ERP—the perfect pairing
By default, the IoT involves capturing a huge amount of data—from the production line through to the wider supply chain. If the IoT is to truly bring value to an organization, this data needs to be captured and analyzed via an effective enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution. Afterall, a return-on-investment figure can’t be calculated if outcomes cannot be measured.
Using ERP technology alongside IoT solutions is becoming increasingly accepted among manufacturers as a way of addressing this particular challenge. Many are starting to recognize the importance of placing an ERP system at the heart of their smart factories because it means that centralized monitoring becomes possible, accurate data can be collected, informed decisions can be made, and improvements can be measured.
As we move further into 2019, we can expect to see switched-on manufacturers continue to shift towards using intelligent cloud-based ERP solutions to justify their IoT investments. This will enable them to continue to take advantage of new opportunities, to optimize processes, and to remain agile. All through the powerful combination of IoT and ERP.
Manufacturing is certainly back—gone are the days of dirty or dingy factories. Gone is the high use of manual labour and blue screens. Instead, we are entering an Industry 4.0 world where manufacturing is increasingly digital. In this world, ERP software combined with smart factory technology will be the perfect pairing.
To find out more about how you can use ERP to measure the ROI from your IoT investments, get in touch via the Epicor website. If you’d like to benchmark your tech investments and subsequent business growth levels against other manufacturers in your region, view the Global Growth Index.
The research was conducted by Morar Consulting on behalf of Epicor in December 2017. The research questioned 2,200 manufacturing business decision makers and employees in businesses in 14 countries across the globe.
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Fuel for the future
Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST) and Georgia Tech have developed a new system that absorbs CO2 and produces electricity and useable hydrogen fuel.
The new device, which the team calls a Hybrid Na-CO2 System, is basically a big liquid battery. A sodium metal anode is placed in an organic electrolyte, while the cathode is contained in an aqueous solution. The two liquids are separated by a sodium super ionic conductor membrane.
When CO2 is injected into the aqueous electrolyte, it reacts with the cathode, turning the solution more acidic, which in turn generates electricity and creates hydrogen. In tests, the team reported a CO2 conversion efficiency of 50%, and the system was stable enough to run for over 1,000 hours without causing any damage to the electrodes. Unlike other designs, it doesn’t release any CO2 as a gas during normal operation – instead, the remaining half of the CO2 was recovered from the electrolyte as plain old baking soda.
“Carbon capture, utilisation, and sequestration (CCUS) technologies have recently received a great deal of attention for providing a pathway in dealing with global climate change,” says Professor Guntae Kim, head of the study. “The key to that technology is the easy conversion of chemically stable CO2 molecules to other materials. Our new system has solved this problem with CO2 dissolution mechanism.”
The team plans to continue improvement on the design.
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Sandvik creates first 3D printed diamond composite
Sandvik Additive Manufacturing has created the first ever 3D printed diamond composite. While this diamond does not sparkle, it is perfect for a wide range of industrial uses. This super-hard material can be 3D printed in highly complex shapes and can revolutionize the way industry uses the hardest natural material on the planet.
Diamond is harder than anything else in nature. It is a key component in a large range of wear resistant tools in industry, from mining and drilling to machining and also medical implants. Since 1953 it has been possible to produce synthetic diamond, but since it’s so hard and complicated to machine, it is almost impossible to form complex shapes.
By using additive manufacturing, Sandvik has managed to 3D-print diamond composites which can be formed in almost any shape. This opens the possibility of using it in applications that were previously considered impossible.
“We now have the ability to create strong diamond composites in very complex shapes through additive manufacturing, which fundamentally will change the way industries will be able to use this material. As of now, the only limit to how this super-hard material can be shaped and used is down to the designer’s imagination,” says Mikael Schuisky, Head of R&D and Operations at Sandvik Additive Manufacturing.
The difference between Sandvik’s diamond and natural or synthetic diamond is that Sandvik’s is a composite material. Most of the material is diamond, but to make it printable and dense it needs to be cemented in a very hard matrix material, keeping the most important physical properties of pure diamond.
“Sandvik’s 3D printed diamond composite is a true innovation. It means that we can begin to use diamond in applications and shapes never conceived possible before,” said Susanne Norgren, Adjunct Professor in Applied Materials Science at Uppsala University. “Just imagine what it could do to industries, when it is possible to print anything, in any shape – in diamond.”
The diamond composite has been tested and found to have extremely high hardness, exceptional heat conductivity, while also possessing low density, very good thermal expansion and fantastic corrosion resistance. It was unveiled at the RAPID + TCT show in Detroit May 21 – 23, 2019, North America’s leading event for Additive Manufacturing.
Video
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University of Canterbury showcasing innovation at SouthMACH
A world first! 3D printed titanium internal combustion engine, designed and created by the University of Canterbury for the Shell Eco-Marathon car.
The University of Canterbury will be at SouthMach in the Innovation Quarter (stand 169). Come talk to UC’s academic and research staff and see innovation in action.
The Shell Eco-Marathon car, which was raced in Singapore in 2018 as part of a global student competition, will be on display at SouthMach.
The Shell Eco-marathon challenges student teams around the world to design, build, test and drive ultra-energy-efficient vehicles. In March 2018, the Eco-marathon student team came home from Singapore triumphant, after beating more than 100 teams from 21 countries at the Shell Eco-marathon Asia 2018 event by winning the Technical Innovation Award.
The team also unveiled a world first – a 3D-printed titanium internal combustion engine. The 3D printed engine will also be on display at the event for visitors to see up close.
Associate Professor Don Clucas will also be giving a seminar on Thursday 23 May. This presentation will highlight some of our 3D Printing successes and where we think the technology is heading, as well as how companies can work with us and our students.
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Portable 3D scanner on show at Southmach 2019
SOUTHMACH exhibitor, Professional CAD Systems Ltd are showing their new
HandySCAN3d a truly portable metrology grade 3D scanner on their stand at Southmach 2019 which opened in Christchurch today.
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Lilium reveals new air taxi as it celebrates maiden flight
Munich 16 May 2019: Lilium, the Munich-based startup developing a revolutionary on- demand air taxi service, today revealed its new five-seater air taxi prototype for the first time. The unveiling of the new Lilium Jet came as the all-electric aircraft completed its maiden flight in the skies over Germany earlier this month.
The full-scale, full-weight prototype is powered by 36 all-electric jet engines that allow it to take-off and land vertically, while achieving remarkably efficient horizontal, or cruise, flight. The simplicity of the aircraft design, with no tail, no rudder, no propellers, no gearbox and only one moving part in the engine not only contributes to the safety and affordability of the aircraft, but it has also allowed the design team to focus their efforts on creating a magical customer experience in the cabin, from panoramic windows to gull-wing doors.
Celebrating the landmark, Daniel Wiegand, co-founder and CEO, said: “Today we are taking another huge step towards making urban air mobility a reality. In less than two years we have been able to design, build and successfully fly an aircraft that will serve as our template for mass production. Moving from two to five seats was always our ambition as it enables us to open up the skies to many more travelers. Whether its friends or families flying together or business travelers ride-sharing into the city, having five seats delivers an economy of scale you just can’t achieve with two. The Lilium Jet itself is beautiful and we were thrilled to see it take to the skies for the first time. With the perfect balance of range and speed, our aircraft has the potential to positively impact the way people choose to live and travel, all over the world.”
With a top speed of 300 km/h and a range of 300km, the Lilium Jet is capable of completing much longer journeys than the majority of its competitors. This is, in part, thanks to the fixed wing design of the aircraft. While drone-based aircraft consume much of their energy keep- ing an aircraft in the air, the Lilium Jet can rely on the lift generated by the fixed wing to do this, meaning it will require less than ten percent of its maximum 2000 horsepower during cruise flight. This efficiency, which is comparable to the energy usage of an electric car over the same distance, means the aircraft would not just be capable of connecting suburbs to city centers and airports to main train stations, but would also deliver affordable high-speed connections across entire regions.
The Lilium Jet first took to the air at 08.03 local time on 4th May 2019, having completed extensive ground testing at Lilium’s HQ in Munich, Germany. The prototype aircraft, which is controlled remotely from the ground, has since begun a rigorous flight test campaign that will prove its capability and lay the foundations for certification of the aircraft to safety standards comparable to those of large commercial aircraft.
Commenting on the successful first flight, Leandro Bigarella, Head of Flight Test, said: “While a maiden flight is always a moment of truth for a business, the Lilium Jet performed exactly as expected and responded well to our inputs. Our flight test program will now continue with increasingly complex maneuvers as we look towards our next big goal of achieving transition flight, which is when the aircraft moves seamlessly from vertical to horizontal flight.”
Lilium plans to manufacture and operate the Lilium Jet as part of a revolutionary on-demand air taxi service. At the push of a button, passengers will be able to use the Lilium app to locate their nearest landing pad and plan their journey with ease. Choosing from a network of pads across cities and regions, passengers will enjoy journeys that are comparable in price with a taxi, yet four times faster. Lilium expects to be fully-operational in various cities around the world by 2025, although trial services will start earlier than this in several locations.
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NASA Seeks US Partners to Develop Reusable Systems to Land Astronauts on Moon
As the next major step to return astronauts to the Moon under Space Policy Directive-1, NASA announced plans on Dec. 13 to work with American companies to design and develop new reusable systems for astronauts to land on the lunar surface. The agency is planning to test new human-class landers on the Moon beginning in 2024, with the goal of sending crew to the surface in 2028.
Through multi-phased lunar exploration partnerships, NASA is asking American companies to study the best approach to landing astronauts on the Moon and start the development as quickly as possible with current and future anticipated technologies.
“Building on our model in low-Earth orbit, we’ll expand our partnerships with industry and other nations to explore the Moon and advance our missions to farther destinations such as Mars, with America leading the way,” said NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine. “When we send astronauts to the surface of the Moon in the next decade, it will be in a sustainable fashion.”
The agency’s leading approach to sending humans to the Moon is using a system of three separate elements that will provide transfer, landing, and safe return. A key aspect of this proposed approach is to use the Gateway for roundtrip journeys to and from the surface of the Moon.
Using the Gateway to land astronauts on the Moon allows the first building blocks for fully reusable lunar landers. Initially NASA expects two of the lander elements to be reusable and refueled by cargo ships carrying fuel from Earth to the Gateway. The agency is also working on technologies to make rocket propellants using water ice and regolith from the Moon. Once the ability to harness resources from the Moon for propellant becomes viable, NASA plans to refuel these elements with the Moon’s own resources. This process, known as in-situ resource utilization or ISRU, will make the third element also refuelable and reusable.
NASA published a formal request for proposals to an appendix of the second Next Space Technologies for Exploration Partnerships (NextSTEP-2) Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) on Feb. 7, and responses are due March 25.
According to the solicitation, NASA will fund industry-led development and flight demonstrations of lunar landers built for astronauts by supporting critical studies and risk reduction activities to advance technology requirements, tailor applicable standards, develop technology, and perform initial demonstrations by landing on the Moon.
When NASA again sends humans to the Moon, the surface will be buzzing with new research and robotic activity, and there will be more opportunities for discovery than ever before. Private sector innovation is key to these NASA missions, and the NextSTEP public-private partnership model is advancing capabilities for human spaceflight while stimulating commercial activities in space.
The President’s direction from Space Policy Directive-1 galvanizes NASA’s return to the Moon and builds on progress on the Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft, efforts with commercial and international partners, and knowledge gained from current robotic presence at the Moon and Mars.
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Sir James Dyson is looking for young inventors who are tackling big problems in ingenious ways
This year marks the 15th anniversary of the James Dyson Award, and the 15th year of empowering the next generation of engineers to solve the problems that will impact their future.
The James Dyson Foundation is challenging innovative and entrepreneurial students and recent graduates to design something that solves a problem. Ingenuity can be found anywhere. We want to support as many young inventors as we can. James Dyson says: “Young engineers and designers have perspective and unbridled intelligence that makes them incredibly adept at problem solving. Their ideas can easily be dismissed, but if nurtured and celebrated they are transformative. Developing a product or technology is a long and daunting process; the James Dyson Award celebrates the inventive young people embarking on that process. The Award champions our next generation of inventors and will propel them towards future success. I am excited to see what surprising ideas this year’s award brings.”
Past winners have sought to address food waste, water conservation, pollution, medical treatment in developing countries and sustainability across all industries.
The 2018 International Winner, O-Wind Turbine (pictured), addresses sustainable energy generation in urban environments with a new type of wind turbine that captures wind flowing in every direction.
The competition brief: design something that solves a problem. This problem may be a frustration we all face in daily life, or a global issue. The important thing is that the solution is effective and demonstrates considered design thinking.
The prize is NZ$ 55,000* (plus NZ$9,000 for the winner’s university), two international runners-up receive NZ $9,000 and each national winner receives NZ$3,500).
The process: entries are judged first at the national level – before progressing to the international stage. A panel of Dyson engineers select an international shortlist of 20 entries. The Top 20 projects are then reviewed by Sir James Dyson, who selects the international winner.
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New fuel cell technology runs on solid carbon.
Caption: Research scientist Dong Ding is developing direct carbon fuel cells at INL’s Energy Innovation Laboratory. Credit: Idaho National Laboratory
ADVANCEMENTS IN A FUEL CELL TECHNOLOGY POWERED BY SOLID CARBON COULD MAKE ELECTRICITY GENERATION FROM COAL AND BIOMASS CLEANER AND MORE EFFICIENT. INNOVATIONS IN THE ANODE, THE ELECTROLYTE AND THE FUEL ALLOW THE FUEL CELL TO UTILISE MORE CARBON, OPERATE AT LOWER TEMPERATURES AND SHOW HIGHER MAXIMUM POWER DENSITIES THAN EARLIER DIRECT CARBON FUEL CELLS (DCFCS).
Advancements in a fuel cell technology powered by solid carbon could make electricity generation from resources such as coal and biomass cleaner and more efficient, according to a new paper published by Idaho National Laboratory researchers.
The fuel cell design incorporates innovations in three components: the anode, the electrolyte and the fuel. Together, these advancements allow the fuel cell to utilise about three times as much carbon as earlier direct carbon fuel cell (DCFC) designs.
The fuel cells also operate at lower temperatures and showed higher maximum power densities than earlier DCFCs, according to INL materials engineer Dong Ding.
Whereas hydrogen fuel cells (eg, proton exchange membrane (PEM) and other fuel cells) generate electricity from the chemical reaction between pure hydrogen and oxygen, DCFCs can use any number of carbon-based resources for fuel, including coal, coke, tar, biomass and organic waste.
Because DCFCs make use of readily available fuels, they are potentially more efficient than conventional hydrogen fuel cells. “You can skip the energy-intensive step of producing hydrogen,” Ding says.
But earlier DCFC designs have several drawbacks: they require high temperatures – 700 to 900 degrees Celsius – which makes them less efficient and less durable. Further, as a consequence of those high temperatures, they’re typically constructed of expensive materials that can handle the heat.
Also, early DCFC designs aren’t able to effectively utilise the carbon fuel.
Ding and his colleagues addressed these challenges by designing a true direct carbon fuel cell that’s capable of operating at lower temperatures – below 600 degrees Celsius. The fuel cell makes use of solid carbon, which is finely ground and injected via an airstream into the cell. The researchers tackled the need for high temperatures by developing an electrolyte using highly conductive materials – doped cerium oxide and carbonate. These materials maintain their performance under lower temperatures.
Next, they increased carbon utilisation by developing a 3-D ceramic textile anode design that interlaces bundles of fibres together like a piece of cloth. The fibres themselves are hollow and porous. All of these features combine to maximise the amount of surface area that’s available for a chemical reaction with the carbon fuel.
Finally, the researchers developed a composite fuel made from solid carbon and carbonate. “At the operating temperature, that composite is fluidlike,” Ding says. “It can easily flow into the interface.”
The molten carbonate carries the solid carbon into the hollow fibres and the pinholes of the anode, increasing the power density of the fuel cell.
The resulting fuel cell looks like a green, ceramic watch battery that’s about as thick as a piece of construction paper. A larger square is 10 centimetres on each side. The fuel cells can be stacked on top of one another depending on the application.
The technology has the potential for improved utilisation of carbon fuels, such as coal and biomass, because direct carbon fuel cells produce carbon dioxide without the mixture of other gases and particulates found in smoke from coal-fired power plants, for example. This makes it easier to implement carbon capture technologies, Ding says.
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Manufacturing is Back, and More Intelligent Than Ever- But Are We Reaping the Benefits Yet?
Look around, and the manufacturing industry is brimming with examples of firms that are bringing the latest technological developments to their factory floors. Their goal? To improve processes, increase automation levels, and facilitate future business growth.
A case in point is the manufacturing giant Siemens, which has used automation to reduce the rollout time of new products by a third. Another example is global autoparts manufacturer Hirotec, which has used cloud-based analytics and IoT to reduce system inspection times by 100 percent—a move that has helped the company avoid a painful $361 per-second bill for downtime during manual inspections.
Inspiring innovation
It’s outcomes such as these that are inspiring other manufacturers to implement Internet of Things (IoT) technologies into their production environments. In fact, according to recent research from Epicor, 69 percent of manufacturers believe their industry is on the verge of large scale IoT adoption or is at least at an experimental level.
All this indicates the sector is entering an exciting period of change, where manufacturers seize on digital innovation and transformation opportunities. Indeed, the same Epicor research shows us that manufacturers are increasingly embracing technology. 79 percent already have sensors on their machines, and 42 percent are using IoT technology to control and work with robots. In addition to making manufacturers more agile and more responsive, such technologies can also enable smaller firms to compete against much larger players, as Epicor customer SouthCo has shown.
Like many emerging trends, willingness to adopt and get to grips with IoT varies across geographic regions. Despite the hype, a surprising 44 percent of global manufacturers have still either never heard of IoT or know little about it. This rises to 57 percent in EMEA, where the pace of adoption is much lower compared to Asia Pacific, where the thirst for new technology is much higher. Just 27 percent of manufacturers in APAC are unaware or poorly informed about IoT.
However, where IoT is put to work—with production robots that can send and receive data, or perhaps the use of RFID technology to connect shipments with factory equipment—not every manufacturer is finding it easy to measure the gains enabled by these technology implementations.
Research tells us that IoT technology itself can be challenging to implement, and that its impact can be hard to quantify. In fact, around three-quarters (72 percent) of manufacturers surveyed by Epicor in the research above, say they are yet to measure any real return on their IoT investments to date.
This, it seems, is the harsh reality of IoT. Yes, connected technology is putting the spotlight back on manufacturing. Yes, it’s making the factories of the future possible, today. And yes, there are outstanding examples of manufacturers transforming their operations as a result. Yet many firms within the manufacturing community are struggling to justify their spend on all of this new technology.
IoT and ERP—the perfect pairing
By default, the IoT involves capturing a huge amount of data—from the production line through to the wider supply chain. If the IoT is to truly bring value to an organization, this data needs to be captured and analyzed via an effective enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution. Afterall, a return-on-investment figure can’t be calculated if outcomes cannot be measured.
Using ERP technology alongside IoT solutions is becoming increasingly accepted among manufacturers as a way of addressing this particular challenge. Many are starting to recognize the importance of placing an ERP system at the heart of their smart factories because it means that centralized monitoring becomes possible, accurate data can be collected, informed decisions can be made, and improvements can be measured.
As we move further into 2019, we can expect to see switched-on manufacturers continue to shift towards using intelligent cloud-based ERP solutions to justify their IoT investments. This will enable them to continue to take advantage of new opportunities, to optimize processes, and to remain agile. All through the powerful combination of IoT and ERP.
Manufacturing is certainly back—gone are the days of dirty or dingy factories. Gone is the high use of manual labour and blue screens. Instead, we are entering an Industry 4.0 world where manufacturing is increasingly digital. In this world, ERP software combined with smart factory technology will be the perfect pairing.
To find out more about how you can use ERP to measure the ROI from your IoT investments, get in touch via the Epicor website. If you’d like to benchmark your tech investments and subsequent business growth levels against other manufacturers in your region, view the Global Growth Index.
The research was conducted by Morar Consulting on behalf of Epicor in December 2017. The research questioned 2,200 manufacturing business decision makers and employees in businesses in 14 countries across the globe.
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Manufacturing is Back, and More Intelligent Than Ever—But Are We Reaping the Benefits Yet?
Terri Hiskey, Vice President of Product Marketing for Manufacturing at Epicor Software
Look around, and the manufacturing industry is brimming with examples of firms that are bringing the latest technological developments to their factory floors. Their goal? To improve processes, increase automation levels, and facilitate future business growth.
A case in point is the manufacturing giant Siemens, which has used automation to reduce the rollout time of new products by a third. Another example is global autoparts manufacturer Hirotec, which has used cloud-based analytics and IoT to reduce system inspection times by 100 percent—a move that has helped the company avoid a painful $361 per-second bill for downtime during manual inspections.
Inspiring innovation
It’s outcomes such as these that are inspiring other manufacturers to implement Internet of Things (IoT) technologies into their production environments. In fact, according to recent research from Epicor, 69 percent of manufacturers believe their industry is on the verge of large scale IoT adoption or is at least at an experimental level.
All this indicates the sector is entering an exciting period of change, where manufacturers seize on digital innovation and transformation opportunities. Indeed, the same Epicor research shows us that manufacturers are increasingly embracing technology. 79 percent already have sensors on their machines, and 42 percent are using IoT technology to control and work with robots. In addition to making manufacturers more agile and more responsive, such technologies can also enable smaller firms to compete against much larger players, as Epicor customer SouthCo has shown.
Like many emerging trends, willingness to adopt and get to grips with IoT varies across geographic regions. Despite the hype, a surprising 44 percent of global manufacturers have still either never heard of IoT or know little about it. This rises to 57 percent in EMEA, where the pace of adoption is much lower compared to Asia Pacific, where the thirst for new technology is much higher. Just 27 percent of manufacturers in APAC are unaware or poorly informed about IoT.
Counting the gains
However, where IoT is put to work—with production robots that can send and receive data, or perhaps the use of RFID technology to connect shipments with factory equipment—not every manufacturer is finding it easy to measure the gains enabled by these technology implementations.
Research tells us that IoT technology itself can be challenging to implement, and that its impact can be hard to quantify. In fact, around three-quarters (72 percent) of manufacturers surveyed by Epicor in the research above, say they are yet to measure any real return on their IoT investments to date.
This, it seems, is the harsh reality of IoT. Yes, connected technology is putting the spotlight back on manufacturing. Yes, it’s making the factories of the future possible, today. And yes, there are outstanding examples of manufacturers transforming their operations as a result. Yet many firms within the manufacturing community are struggling to justify their spend on all of this new technology.
IoT and ERP—the perfect pairing
By default, the IoT involves capturing a huge amount of data—from the production line through to the wider supply chain. If the IoT is to truly bring value to an organization, this data needs to be captured and analyzed via an effective enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution. Afterall, a return-on-investment figure can’t be calculated if outcomes cannot be measured.
Using ERP technology alongside IoT solutions is becoming increasingly accepted among manufacturers as a way of addressing this particular challenge. Many are starting to recognize the importance of placing an ERP system at the heart of their smart factories because it means that centralized monitoring becomes possible, accurate data can be collected, informed decisions can be made, and improvements can be measured.
As we move further into 2019, we can expect to see switched-on manufacturers continue to shift towards using intelligent cloud-based ERP solutions to justify their IoT investments. This will enable them to continue to take advantage of new opportunities, to optimize processes, and to remain agile. All through the powerful combination of IoT and ERP.
Manufacturing is certainly back—gone are the days of dirty or dingy factories. Gone is the high use of manual labour and blue screens. Instead, we are entering an Industry 4.0 world where manufacturing is increasingly digital. In this world, ERP software combined with smart factory technology will be the perfect pairing.
To find out more about how you can use ERP to measure the ROI from your IoT investments, get in touch via the Epicor website. If you’d like to benchmark your tech investments and subsequent business growth levels against other manufacturers in your region, view the Global Growth Index.
The research was conducted by Morar Consulting on behalf of Epicor in December 2017. The research questioned 2,200 manufacturing business decision makers and employees in businesses in 14 countries across the globe.
The post Manufacturing is Back, and More Intelligent Than Ever—But Are We Reaping the Benefits Yet? appeared first on NZ Engineering News.
Fuel for the future
The new device, which the team calls a Hybrid Na-CO2 System, is basically a big liquid battery. A sodium metal anode is placed in an organic electrolyte, while the cathode is contained in an aqueous solution. The two liquids are separated by a sodium super ionic conductor membrane.
When CO2 is injected into the aqueous electrolyte, it reacts with the cathode, turning the solution more acidic, which in turn generates electricity and creates hydrogen. In tests, the team reported a CO2 conversion efficiency of 50%, and the system was stable enough to run for over 1,000 hours without causing any damage to the electrodes. Unlike other designs, it doesn’t release any CO2 as a gas during normal operation – instead, the remaining half of the CO2 was recovered from the electrolyte as plain old baking soda.
“Carbon capture, utilisation, and sequestration (CCUS) technologies have recently received a great deal of attention for providing a pathway in dealing with global climate change,” says Professor Guntae Kim, head of the study. “The key to that technology is the easy conversion of chemically stable CO2 molecules to other materials. Our new system has solved this problem with CO2 dissolution mechanism.”
The team plans to continue improvement on the design.
The post Fuel for the future appeared first on NZ Engineering News.
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