Research projects are (co)financed by the Slovenian Research and Innovation Agency

• Member of the University od Ljubljana: Faculty of Mechanical Engineering
• Project code: L2-2618
• Science: Engineering sciences and technologies
• SICRIS: Tribological surface design with advanced metal additive manufacturing – TriboADAM (cobiss.net)

Industry 4.0, the integration of intelligent production systems and advanced information technology, is a key driver for economic growth. Additive manufacturing (AM), a form of 3D printing, is becoming part of mainstream manufacturing in smart factories. Advances in AM over the past decade have seen it develop from a prototyping technology to the point where it is transforming the ways in which products are designed, developed, manufactured, and distributed. Metal AM is a bottom-up process involving metallic components being formed, layer by layer, based on a 3D computer model. The AM of metals makes use of laser technologies, e.g., powder bed and metal deposition, to fuse the powders into solids. AM is revolutionary because the components are no longer produced by a materials-removal process.

In this project innovative approaches will be used to overcome current deficiencies: the systematic use of the same contact conditions and set of process variables for all materials, relevant for selected applications, the use of materials, powders and performance criteria relevant to industrial needs. This means the results will not only be scientifically new, but will have a direct impact on industry, and the use of tribological mechanisms, from the nano- to the macro-scale, which is the only way to achieve the necessary tribological performance.