| Abstract Scope |
Nuclear fusion necessitates the use of ceramic breeder blankets. Current fabrication methods are limited to simple geometries that lack flexibility to meet design requirements. Stereolithography (SLA) additive manufacturing offers a transformative alternative, enabling complex geometries such as lattice structures and mathematically optimized high-surface-area architectures that increase surface-area-to-volume ratios, reduce diffusion distances, and improve purge gas accessibility while reducing fabrication costs by eliminating post-processing. This work develops a lithium-containing ceramic photopolymer resin for SLA fabrication of breeder components leveraging the Formlabs Form 4L open-material mode to enable custom resin formulations. Parts are debound and sintered targeting >98% relative density, surpassing the 92% achieved by prior vat photopolymerization approaches. Resin development is characterized by Differential Scanning Calorimetry, Thermogravimetric Analysis, Fourier-Transform InfraRed spectroscopy, and X-Ray Diffraction, with final microstructural analysis by XRD and SEM, establishing a scalable pathway toward geometrically optimized breeder components for fusion energy. |