Bourell, David Lee2011-02-162011-02-162017-05-112011-02-162011-02-162017-05-112010-12December 2http://hdl.handle.net/2152/ETD-UT-2010-12-2039textIn an effort to gain a more comprehensive and complete understanding of the thermal behaviors occurring during the selective laser sintering process, external temperature measurements were taken during the build process. To accomplish this, an infrared camera was aimed directly through a viewport on the front of the sinterstation. The temperature was monitored during the heating process which showed slightly non-uniform heating of the part bed surface. Temperatures were also recorded while the laser was sintering each layer and the subsequent cooling of the entire machine following the build. By directly capturing infrared images of the part bed’s surface, it is clearer how the temperature gradients behave and the impact such variables have on part build efficiency.application/pdfengSelective Laser SinteringSLSThermal imagingSolid freeform fabricationthesis2011-02-16