[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 40 (Wednesday, March 1, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 12918-12919]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-04129]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Institute of Standards and Technology


Metal Additive Manufacturing Powder Consortium

AGENCY: National Institute of Standards and Technology, Department of 
Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of research Consortium.

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SUMMARY: The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), an 
agency of the United States Department of Commerce, in support of 
efforts to develop standards for metal powders used in additive 
manufacturing (AM), is establishing the Metal Additive Manufacturing 
Powder Consortium (``Consortium''). The Consortium will bring together 
stakeholders to identify and address pre-competitive measurement 
science and standards needs related to metal powders used in various AM 
technologies. The Consortium efforts are intended to develop 
measurement solutions and standards to improve measurement confidence, 
establish measurement traceability, and enable comparability in the 
measurements to quantify the performance of metal powders in AM 
applications. Participants will be required to sign a Cooperative 
Research and Development Agreement (CRADA). At NIST's discretion, 
entities which are

[[Page 12919]]

not permitted to enter into CRADAs pursuant to law or other 
governmental constraint may be allowed to participate in the Consortium 
pursuant to a separate non-CRADA agreement.

DATES: The Consortium's activities will commence on July 1, 2023 
(``Commencement Date''). NIST will accept letters of interest to 
participate in this Consortium on an ongoing basis.

ADDRESSES: Completed letters of interest or requests for additional 
information about the Consortium can be directed via mail to the 
Consortium Manager, Dr. Shawn Moylan, Intelligent Systems Division of 
NIST's Engineering Laboratory, 100 Bureau Drive, Mail Stop 8220, 
Gaithersburg, Maryland 20899, or via electronic mail to 
[email protected], or by telephone at (301) 975-4352.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: J'aime Maynard, TPO Agreements 
Officer, National Institute of Standards and Technology's Technology 
Partnerships Office, by mail to 100 Bureau Drive, Mail Stop 2200, 
Gaithersburg, Maryland 20899, by electronic mail to 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Metal Additive Manufacturing Powder 
(MAMP) Consortium is focused on pre-competitive measurement science and 
standards research for metal powder feedstocks used in additive 
manufacturing (AM). Laser powder bed fusion and powder-blown directed 
energy deposition are of particular interest, and other AM methods 
utilizing metal powder may also be considered. MAMP research findings 
will broadly benefit the AM community, with more direct benefit to 
metal powder manufacturers, manufacturers of powder measurement tools, 
original AM equipment manufacturers, academic researchers focused on 
metal powders, standards development organizations addressing AM, as 
well as Federal and state agencies seeking to advance AM for their 
missions and applications. All MAMP research findings will be 
considered for development of new standards and modifications to 
existing standards under development at NIST and in other accredited 
standards development organizations.
    The Consortium will address industrial needs over a broad range of 
topics, as guided by the Consortium Steering Committee, including:

(1) characterization of powder (e.g., size, shape, chemistry, surface 
roughness, rheology, flow, packing density)
(2) defining effective powder use in the AM applications being 
considered and scientifically correlating it with powder 
characterization results
(3) quantitative experimental and theoretical comparisons between 
various size/shape measurement techniques
(4) quantitative experimental and theoretical comparisons between 
various powder mixing/flow/spreading/packing measurements
(5) correlation of bulk powder properties to spreading and blowing 
processes
(6) correlation of spreading processes to powder packing and laser 
absorption
(7) optimization of powder attributes, based on quantitative and 
relevant powder characterization techniques, for improved AM processes
(8) optimized powder reuse and re-conditioning practices through 
deeper, more fundamental understanding of powder feedstock changes 
during AM processes.
(9) rapid qualification of new and re-conditioned powder sources 
through identification and characterization of critical powder 
attributes

    Measurements may include: 2D and 3D powder shape and size 
measurement, powder rheology, helium pycnometry, surface area, thermal 
flash, high-speed imaging of powder processes, X-ray photoelectron 
spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, laser 
absorption.
    The NIST AM Metrology Testbed (AMMT), Powder Spreading Testbed 
(PST) and other AM platforms at NIST as well as various simulation 
tools, including discrete element method, will be used to support the 
Consortium's research efforts.
    No proprietary information will be shared as part of the 
Consortium.

Participation Process

    NIST is soliciting responses from all sources, including other 
Federal Government agencies, State or local governments, foreign 
government agencies, industrial organizations (including corporations, 
partnerships, and limited partnerships, and industrial development 
organizations), public and private foundations, and nonprofit 
organizations (including universities). Eligibility will be determined 
by NIST based on the information provided by prospective participants 
in response to this notice. NIST will evaluate the submitted responses 
from prospective participants to determine eligibility to participate 
in this Consortium. Prospective participants should provide letters of 
interest with the following information to NIST's Consortium Manager:
    (1) A description of their experience in metals-based additive 
manufacturing and related expertise to contribute to the Consortium.
    (2) List of interested party's anticipated participants.
    Letters of interest must not include business proprietary 
information. NIST will not treat any information provided in response 
to this notice as proprietary information. NIST will notify each 
organization of its eligibility. In order to participate in this 
Consortium, each eligible organization must sign a CRADA for this 
Consortium. Entities which are not permitted to enter into CRADAs 
pursuant to law or other governmental constraint may be allowed to 
participate in the Consortium, at NIST's discretion, pursuant to 
separate non-CRADA agreements with terms that may differ, as necessary, 
from the Consortium CRADA terms.
    Participants will contribute US $25,000 in funds or equivalent in-
kind contributions to be members of the Consortium. NIST does not 
guarantee participation in the Consortium to any organization 
submitting a letter of interest. This phase of the Consortium will be 
for up to five years.
    Authority: 15 U.S.C. 3710a.

Alicia Chambers,
NIST Executive Secretariat.
[FR Doc. 2023-04129 Filed 2-28-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-13-P