University of Birmingham researchers and Cooksongold Additive Manufacturing have received EPSRC Early-stage Prosperity Partnership funding for a project that will develop precious metal alloys for 3D printing. 

The project will see university metallurgists Dr Biao Cai, Professor Moataz Attallah from the School of Metallurgy and Materials, and healthcare technologies expert Dr Sophie Cox from the School of Chemical Engineering collaborate with technical specialists from Cooksongold. 

Founded in Birmingham’s Jewellery Quarter over 100 years ago, Cooksongold is now the UK’s largest one-stop shop for the jewellery trade, and Cooksongold Additive Manufacturing supplies products and services based on 3D printing of precious metals.

Engineering & Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) Prosperity Partnerships enable universities and manufacturing businesses to work together to address shared research challenges. 

This particular project will establish a team with combined expertise to tackle a pressing need faced by the precious metals industry. Precious metals are an indispensable material for products from wedding rings to dental implants.  They are also used in production processes and have industrial applications in diverse sectors including glass manufacturing, healthcare, and satellites. 

These sectors require high-performance, customised components, and these are best produced 3D printing, which can deliver a high degree of precision for bespoke manufacturing.

The project will employ state-of-the-art techniques to develop precious metal alloys that can be used in 3D printing for these exacting industrial applications. 

Dr Biao Cai said: “I am delighted with the success of our application and am looking forward to extending the working relationship with Cooksongold in this project, to tackle key industrial challenges in the precious metals industry.” 

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