Freeform 3D deposition of small diameter copper tubes using a powder-binder feedstock

Copper is an interesting material for many applications including thermal management devices, which make often use of copper piping. This study proposes a method for the freeform deposition of a copper-binder feedstock, extruded through an additive manufacturing machine. Several tubes have been printed using a special nozzle and varying process parameters. The dimensional results of the deposited specimens at the green state and the physical properties of the tubes after debinding and sintering have been measured. The results demonstrate that piping in serpentine layout can be deposited by extrusion and sintered, even with sharp bends without significant ovalization of the cross-section.