3D Printing Processes Ceramic Additive Manufacturing Standards

ASTM proposes standard for ceramic AM design

Tess BoissonneaultAugust 7, 2026

2 minutes read

ASTM proposes standard for ceramic AM design — 3D printed ceramic otoplastics designed by OC GmbH and manufactured using Lithoz's CeraFab S65 Medical platforms by CADdent (Photo: Lithoz)

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ASTM International, a global developer of standards, has set its sights on ceramic additive manufacturing. The organization’s additive manufacturing technologies committee has proposed a standard for guiding the design process for ceramic AM with the aim of minimizing common challenges that can occur with 3D printed ceramic parts, such as unpredictable shrinkage and embrittlement.

The guide, which is currently a work item designated as WK84355, is intended to be used by product planners and designers that are 3D printing ceramic components. As the ASTM committee says: “It provides the necessary basic knowledge about ceramic parts and the special possibilities of additive manufacturing of ceramics. Therefore, more in-depth previous knowledge in these areas is not assumed.”

Ceramic AM is increasingly being used in various sectors, from medical and dental to aerospace and electronics. Technical ceramic AM materials offer certain characteristics that exceed the capabilities of metal and polymer AM, including superior hardness, heat resistance, chemical inertness, and insulating properties. Because ceramic 3D printing results in a green part, however, sintering is a necessary post process that introduces factors like shrinkage. Shrinkage in the sintering stage can be challenging to control, however it can be accounted for in the design process. Or, at the very least, the risks associated with shrinkage, such as embrittlement, can be mitigated in the design stage.

As ASTM member Brandon Cox, the technical contact for the work item, explained: “Ceramics are known to be useful for their strength, heat resistance, hardness, chemical inertness and electrical insulation properties, while also being brittle and undergoing shrinkage during the final sintering process. This guide could help customers and regulators evaluate whether AM ceramic parts were designed properly based on related technical needs.”

The ceramic AM standard has been proposed by the ASTM Committee F42 on Additive Manufacturing Technologies, which itself was formed in 2009 and currently comprises over 775 members. As a “work item” the ceramic AM standard is still in development.

With ceramic AM having evolved beyond its status as a niche 3D printing technology and emerging as an industrial production method—in large part thanks to a relatively small number of hardware leaders—there is a growing focus on developing standards for the process. Earlier this week, for instance, we wrote about how the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) was working on creating standardized measurement procedures for characterizing ceramic AM feedstocks for direct ink writing and photopolymerization processes.