Electron Beam Melting of Pure Copper – From Research to Industrialization

The Additive Manufacturing technology Electron Beam Melting shows high potential in processing pure copper for high conductivity applications. Pure copper powder was consolidated, and process parameters were optimized. It is feasible to manufacture components with a relative density >99.5 %, an electrical conductivity >57 MS/m, an ultimate tensile strength >175 MPa and with an elongation at fraction of >35 %. With those physical properties, high performance applications like heat exchangers, induction coils and electrification components can be additively manufactured with EBM.