The ambition of CIRCULAR WELD project is to improve the quality of dot-by-dot WAAM process, and the reliability and precision of the 3D printed products by developing advanced digital models validated through process monitoring and experimental tests. These advancements enable the establishment of the Digital Twin (DT) model of the whole process-to-product workflow. The DT model will be developed and validate by employing an integrated circular approach consisting in several consecutive steps from requirements identification, models formulation and calibration up to their experimental validation. The DT model will consider the thermomechanical aspects of the printing process, the material geometrical and microstructural features, the mechanical parameters and structural response of the printed products. The process-to-product circularity and sustainability will be also assessed. The ambitious goal requires an interdisciplinary effort in the fields of Manufacturing & Technology, Structural Design & material characterization, Circularity & Sustainability, which are the main research areas involved in the project.
The goals will be achieved by developing and testing a physical demonstrator representative of a novel lattice-based energy dissipation device for the seismic retrofitting of steel industrial facilities.
The CIRCULAR WELD project is funded by the European Union, Next Generation EU within the PRIN 2022 PNRR program (D.D.1409 del. 14/09/2022 Ministero dell'Università e della Ricerca).