High temperature strength of an ultra high temperature ceramic produced by additive manufacturing

In this study hafnium diboride was fabricated using the additive manufacturing technique robocasting. Parts have been successfully produced with complex shapes and internal structures not possible via conventional manufacturing techniques. Following pressureless sintering, the monolithic parts reach densities of 94–97% theoretical. These parts exhibit bending strength of 364 ± 31 MPa at room temperature, and maintain strengths of 196 ± 5 MPa up to 1950 °C, which is comparable to UHTC parts produced by traditional means. These are the highest temperature mechanical tests that a 3D printed part has ever undergone. The successful printing of the high density HfB2 demonstrates the versatile range materials that can be produced via robocasting using Pluronic pastes.