When joining steel to aluminium there is a reaction between iron and aluminium which results in the formation of brittle intermetallic compounds (IMC). These compounds are usually the reason for the poor mechanical strength of the dissimilar metallic joints. The research on dissimilar metal joining is vast but is mainly focused on the automotive industry and therefore, the material in use is very thin, usually less than 1 mm. For materials with thicker sections the present solution is a transition joint made by explosion welding which permits joining of steel to aluminium and avoids the formation of IMCs. However, this solution brings additional costs and extra processing time to join the materials. The main goals of this project are to understand the mechanism of formation of the IMCs, control the formation of the IMCs, and understand their effects on the mechanical properties of the dissimilar Fe-Al joints during laser welding. Laser welding permits accurate and precise control of the welding thermal cycle and thereby the underpinning mechanism of IMC formation can be easily understood along with the factors which control the strength of the joints. The further goal of this project is to find an appropriate interlayer to restrict the Fe-Al reaction. The first stage of the work was focused on the formation and growth of the Fe-Al IMCs during laser welding. The understanding of how the processing conditions affect the IMC growth provides an opportunity to act and avoid its formation and thereby, to optimize the strength of the dissimilar metal joints. The results showed that even with a negligible amount of energy it was not possible to prevent the IMC formation which was composed of both Fe2Al5 and FeAl3 phases. The IMC growth increases exponentially with the applied specific point energy. However, for higher power densities the growth is more accentuated. The strength of the Fe-Al lap-joints was found to be not only dependent on the IMC layer thickness but also on the bonding area. In order to obtain sound joints it is necessary to achieve a balance between these two factors. The thermal model developed for the laser welding process in this joint configuration showed that for the same level of energy it is more efficient to use higher power densities than longer interaction iv times. Even though a thicker IMC layer is formed under this condition due to higher temperature there is also more melting of aluminium which creates a larger bonding area between the steel and the aluminium. The joint strength is thus improved ... [cont.].

Dans le domaine de la fabrication additive plusieurs technologies cohabitent et présentent des maturités et des applications différentes : le lit de poudre, la projection de poudre et le dépôt de fil pour ne citer que les principales. Nous avons étudié, dans le cadre de cette thèse, la réalisation de pièces de grandes dimensions du domaine aéronautique en alliage d’aluminium, par technologie WAAM (Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing) robotisée. Cette technologie repose sur l’utilisation un générateur de soudure à l'arc, d’un système de protection gazeuse et d’un système d'alimentation en métal d'apport sous forme de fil. Pour répondre à cette problématique, plusieurs voies de recherche ont été investiguées. La première traitait principalement de la génération de trajectoires : Plusieurs expérimentations ont permis de montrer l’intérêt et l’importance de la génération de trajectoires et notamment la maitrise de l’orientation outil pour la fabrication additive de pièces complexes en étudiant le respect de la géométrie souhaitée. La seconde concernait l’étude de la santé matière des pièces fabriquées. Des observations au niveau de la microstructure, mais aussi des caractéristiques mécaniques ont permis de mettre en évidence l’influence des paramètres opératoires sur la qualité de la matière déposée. Enfin, la réalisation de pièces fonctionnelles dans le cadre d’un projet financé par la DGA/DGAC et dont les partenaires étaient : STELIA, CONSTELLIUM, CT INGENIERIE et l’Ecole Centrale de Nantes, a permis de mettre en avant l’intérêt du procédé pour la fabrication de pièces aéronautiques. Un élément de structure aéronautique composé de raidisseurs a été fabriqué avec le procédé WAAM sur un substrat double courbure en alliage aluminium. Les difficultés accrues de réalisation ont pu être levées par l'emploi de la méthodologie développée dans le cadre de la thèse. / In the field of additive manufacturing (AM), several processes are present and have different applications and levels of development: the main technologies are powder-bed based AM, powder projection and Wire Additive Manufacturing (WAM). We have studied, in this PhD work, the manufacturing of large scale components in aluminum alloy for aircraft industry with Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing (WAAM). This technology is based on a welding generator, a shielding gas protection and a feedstock (wire in this case). To solve this issue, several ways of research were investigated. The first one dealt with toolpath generation: several experiments have highlighted the importance of tool path generation and the tool orientation to manufacture complex parts and improve the part accuracy. The second one was about the validation of the material quality after deposit. Microstructural observations and mechanical tests have demonstrated the effect of process parameters on the deposit quality. Finally, in the context of a DGA/DGAC funded research project, whose partners were STELIA, CT INGENIERIE, CONSTELLIUM and l’Ecole Centrale de Nantes, the manufacturing of functional part in aluminum alloy has shown the interest of the process for aircraft industry. A structural component based on a double curvature geometry has been manufactured with WAAM. The methodologies developed in this PhD work have enabled us to solve the issues to manufacture that type of component.

Peu d'études concernent actuellement l'influence de la spéciation du plomb (polluant métallique toxique, persistant et très présent dans les écosystèmes) sur sa phyto-toxicité. Pourtant, l'absorption des métaux, leur translocation et les mécanismes impliqués dans leur phyto-toxicité peuvent être fortement modifiés par ce paramètre. Dans ce contexte, l'objectif de la thèse était d'étudier l'influence de la spéciation chimique du plomb (formation de divers complexes organométalliques) sur sa phytodisponibilité et sa phytotoxicité. Des plants de V. faba ont été exposés pendant 1 à 24 h en hydroponie à 5 μM de nitrate de plomb seul ou chélatés à des degrés variables par différents ligands organiques : acide éthylènediamine, acide citrique et substances humiques. Les pourcentages de plomb libre et chélaté ont été calculés puis utilisés pour la conception du dispositif expérimental. La phytotoxicité induite par le plomb a été évalué pour les différentes conditions en mesurant : les activités d'enzymes antioxydantes, la génotoxicité, la peroxydation des lipides, les concentrations d'espèces réactives de l'oxygène, des pigments photosynthétiques et la génotoxicité. La phytotoxicité est fonction de la spéciation des métaux et de la durée d'exposition. Selon la nature du ligand organique, les mécanismes impliqués différent. L'EDTA aurait un rôle protecteur : l'absorption du Pb par les racines est accrue, alors que sa translocation et sa phyto-toxicité sont réduites de façon dose-dépendante. En revanche, l'acide citrique ne modifie pas le transfert du plomb, mais retarde cependant l'induction de sa phytotoxicité. Finalement, les acides fulviques appliqués à 25 mg.L-1, réduisent la toxicité du Pb en limitant son absorption. En outre, l'efficacité et la sensibilité des tests écotoxicologiques, en relation avec l'absorption et la spéciation, ont été comparées (analyse en composantes principales) et discutés. Ce travail trouve donc des applications pour le développement de tests d'écotoxicité pertinents pour évaluer la qualité des milieux. / Lead (Pb) is a known toxic and persistent pollutant, which does not have any essential role in the metabolism of living organism. Only few studies concern Pb-induced phytotoxicity in relation to its speciation, which can nevertheless influence metal uptake, translocation and mechanisms involved in phyto-toxicity. In this context, the objective of this thesis was to study the influence of chemical speciation of Pb (formation of various organometallic complexes) on its phytoavailability and phytotoxicity. Vicia faba seedlings were exposed for 1-24 hourd (h) in controlled hydroponic conditions to 5μM of Pb nitrate alone and chelated to varying degrees by different organic ligands i.e. ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA), citric acid and two types of humic substances (Suwannee River fulvic acid and Elliott Soil fulvic acid). Visual Minteq and WHAM VI metal speciation softwares were used to estimate the chelated and free Pb cations concentration in nutrient solution. These calculations were used to design the experimental layout. The effect of these organic ligands on Pb-induced toxicity to V. faba was assessed by measuring five antioxidant enzyme activities (superoxide dismutase, ascorbate peroxidise, guaiacol peroxidase, catalase, glutathione reductase), lipid peroxidation, reactive oxygenspecies, photosynthetic pigment and genotoxicity. Pb-induced phytotoxicity is the function of metal speciation and duration of exposure. EDTA has a protective role: the absorption of Pb by the roots is increased, whereas its translocation and phyto-toxicity are reduced in a dose-dependent. In contrast, citric acid does not alter the transfer of Pb, but delays the induction of its phytotoxicity. Finally, fulvic acids applied at 25 mg.l-1, reduce the toxicity of Pb by limiting its absorption. Moreover, the efficiency and sensitivity of ecotoxicological tests was compared in relation with Pb uptake and speciation using principal component analysis. This work is, therefore, applicable for the development of ecotoxicity tests relevant to assessing environmental quality

The MIG/MAG process is nowadays the most important welding process. This is due to its high production capacity, characteristic searched by industries to improve their manufacturing processes. Thus, due to this process relevance, development of tools that helps to understanding how it works comes out as necessary, especially in relation to proper welding setting up. One tool for this task is the transfer mode map, which predicts the type of metal transfer according to the welding setting up. However, these maps, normally, are more scientific oriented rather that for practical purposes. In this context, the objective of this work was to map the transfer modes in such a way that welders, supervisors and engineers could be helped in the choice of the best setting up needed. For this purpose, a methodology was developed to provide more information than transfer modes according to the parameter setting up. The proposed mapping had the intention of obtaining transfer regions with proper operating characteristics (stable transfer resulting of appropriate welding conditions) and also information about weld bead conditions, production, thermal cycle and arc radiation. For each transfer mode looked for working at typical welding conditions, which mean that the contact tip-to-work distance was different for the two main transfer modes (short-circuit and spray). A large number of experiments was performed to map the transfers, with the objective to determine a stable operating regions of short-circuit and spray transfer mode using the ER70S-6 welding wire with three different shielding gases. After mapping, single-welded butt joint were carried-out using specific points of the maps instead of bead-on-plate. The proposed methodology was efficient in exterminating regions of operational stability, according to the experiments. It was also possible to have better welding geometries, in general, for setting ups within the map region of operational stability, but the results also depend on the shielding gas and the transfer mode. For setting ups outside the map region of operational stability the bead finish gets worse, except for spray transfer mode when working below the region of operational stability. The deposition efficiency is lower for setting ups outside the region and with gases containing higher levels of CO2, except for short-circuit transfer. The arc radiation intensity is lower in regions below the operational stability and higher above this position, but it is highly dependent of the arc length. Changes in the contact tip-to-work distance and/or in the power source inductance have no influence on the region of operational stability, except for short-circuit transfer, in which the contact tip-to-work distance is able to reduce the set voltage for this region. / O processo de soldagem MIG/MAG é dos mais importantes processos de união de metais na atualidade. Isto se deve à sua alta capacidade de produção, característica constantemente cobiçada pelas indústrias em seus processos de fabricação. Assim, devido à relevância desse processo, torna-se necessária a construção de ferramentas que auxiliem no entendimento do funcionamento do mesmo, principalmente no que se refere à correta regulagem dos parâmetros de soldagem. Uma ferramenta utilizada para isto são os mapas de transferência metálica, que a partir dos parâmetros de regulagem, prevêem como resposta o tipo de transferência metálica. Porém, estes mapas, da forma que são normalmente confeccionados, são de caráter mais científico do que prático. Neste contexto, o objetivo deste trabalho foi a confecção de mapas de transferência práticos que venham auxiliar os usuários de soldagem (soldadores, supervisores e engenheiros) na escolha da melhor regulagem em função de suas necessidades. Para isto, foi desenvolvida uma metodologia que proporcionasse mais do que a informação sobre o tipo de transferência a partir da regulagem dos parâmetros. Nestes mapas propostos, objetivou-se obter uma região de transferência com característica operacional (transferência estável com condições de soldagem apropriadas) e também informações sobre o acabamento e perfil do cordão, rendimento de deposição, ciclo térmico e radiação emitida pelo arco. E para cada modo de transferência se procurou trabalhar apenas em condições típicas, o que fez com que a DBCP fosse diferenciada para dois modos principais de transferência (curto-circuito e goticular). Uma grande quantidade de experimentos foi realizada para mapear as transferências, com objetivo de delimitar uma região de estabilidade operacional de transferências por curto-circuito e outra goticular, utilizando o arame ER70S-6 e três gases de proteção para cada tipo de transferência. Após o levantamento, foram realizadas soldagens em pontos específicos dos mapas utilizando juntas ao invés de soldagem de cordão sobre chapa. Os resultados obtidos mostram que a metodologia proposta foi eficiente na determinação das regiões de estabilidade operacional. Mostraram também que o acabamento e a geometria do cordão, em geral, ficam melhores para regulagens dentro da região de estabilidade operacional, mas com resultados também dependentes do gás de proteção e tipo de transferência utilizada. Para regulagens fora da região de estabilidade operacional o acabamento piora, exceto para transferência goticular em regulagens abaixo da região. O rendimento de deposição é menor fora da região e com gases de proteção com maior teor de CO2, exceto para transferência por curto-circuito, onde, regulagens acima desta região não causam prejuízo. A intensidade de radiação emitida pelo arco é menor abaixo da região e maior acima desta, sendo dependente principalmente do comprimento de arco. A mudança da DBCP e da indutância da fonte não mostraram influência sobre a região de estabilidade operacional, exceto para transferência por curto-circuito, onde a DBCP promove a diminuição da regulagem das tensões desta região. / Mestre em Engenharia Mecânica

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico / The process of welding with solid wire (GMAW) and cored wire (FCAW) processes that compete in quality, productivity and operational, need reliable information of its main features and applications for a given welding condition. Thus, the goal is to compare the capability of each process in the horizontal welding carbon steel ABNT 1020, varying the type of shielding gas on the same level of welding current and voltage to maintain a constant deposition rate per unit length. For this study we used the wire E71T-1 and ER 70S-6 under the shielding 100% CO2 gas and Ar +25% CO2 in two bands of four current and voltage ranges. We evaluated the stability of metal transfer mode and short-circuit capacity through income and presence of deposit discontinuity. In general, the process using a tubular wire had a higher deposition rate compared to solid wire, but with lower performance deposit. It was noted that, the same current range and with increasing voltage range, there was a change in transfer characteristics for both processes. With regard to straining of the weld beads, the solid wire bends showed better with lower voltage ranges. Cored wire for the values of runoff was similar, with a condition better than solid wire for higher values of welding voltage (region of predominance of metal transfer carried by the flow without short circuit). The shielding gas 100% CO2, for both processes, which was provided better performance and higher deposit with transfer voltage ranges with a predominance of short-circuit. / Os processos de soldagem com arame maciço (GMAW) e arame tubular (FCAW), processos que competem entre si em termos de qualidade, produtividade e operacionalidade, necessitam de informações seguras de suas principais características e aplicações para uma determinada condição de soldagem. Desta forma, o objetivo deste trabalho é comparar a potencialidade de cada processo na soldagem horizontal de aço carbono ABNT 1020, variando o tipo de gás de proteção sob um mesmo nível de corrente e tensão de soldagem, mantendo constante a taxa de deposição por unidade de comprimento. Para a realização deste estudo foram utilizados os arames E71T-1 e ER 70S-6 sob as proteções gasosas 100%CO2 e Ar+25%CO2 em duas faixas de corrente e quatro faixas de tensão. As características avaliadas foram a regularidade de transferência metálica no modo curto-circuito e a capacidade produtiva através do rendimento de depósito e presença descontinuidades. De maneira geral, o processo utilizando arame tubular apresentou maior taxa de deposição em relação ao arame maciço, porém com menor rendimento de depósito. Também se observou que, na mesma faixa de corrente e com a elevação da faixa de tensão, houve uma mudança nas características de transferências para os dois processos. Em relação ao escorrimento dos cordões de solda, o arame maciço apresentou melhores cordões com menores faixas de tensão. Para o arame tubular os valores dos escorrimentos foram próximos, tendo uma condição melhor que o arame maciço para maiores valores de tensão de soldagem (região de predominância de transferência metálica conduzida pelo fluxo sem curto-circuito). O gás de proteção 100%CO2, para ambos os processos, foi o que proporcionou melhor rendimento de depósito e maiores faixas de tensão com transferência com predominância de curto-circuito. / Mestre em Engenharia Mecânica

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico / The goal of this work is to improve the knowledge of the metal transfer in MIG/MAG welding and supply data to improve the elaboration of its models. In this intention, experiments were accomplished with steel (inverse polarity; Ar+5%O2 shield gas) and aluminum (inverse polarity, Ar shield gas) electrodes, with steel electrode and several shield gases (inverse polarity, Ar+5%O2+ of 0 to 25%He shield gases) and experiments with steel electrode in direct polarity (Ar+5%O2 shield gas). The flat position welds were filmed by a high-speed video camera using the shadowgraph technique. Kinematics and dynamics characteristics of metal transfers in those experiments were obtained experimentally (droplets arrival speed in the weld pool, in flight droplets average acceleration, effective quantity of movement), and the weld geometry, and compared whenever possible with experimental and numeric results available in literature. The results showed that the weld current influences the kinematics and dynamics characteristics of the drops in all of studied conditions, that the arc length influences the cinematic characteristics and dynamics in the welds with steel and aluminum electrodes, and in the steel welds with different shield gasses; that the shield gas doesn't exercise significant influence in the appraised characteristics, and that the current polarity only affects the cinematic characteristics and dynamics in globular transfer mode. Additionally, the welding current affects the weld penetration despite the use of approximately the same heat input, the arc length affect the steel and aluminum weld penetration and with different shield gasses, the shield gas didn't exercise influences in the values of the penetration but it altered the form of the weld and the current polarity didn't exercise influences the weld penetration, but just in width and reinforcement, being more slender the weld bead in direct polarity. / Com o intuito de aprofundar o conhecimento da transferência metálica em MIG/MAG goticular e fornecer dados para aprimorar a elaboração de modelos da mesma, foram realizados experimentos com eletrodos de aço (polaridade inversa, gás de proteção Ar+5%O2) e alumínio (polaridade inversa, gás de proteção Ar), experimentos com eletrodo de aço e vários gases de proteção (polaridade inversa, gases de proteção Ar+5%O2+de 0 a 25%He), e experimentos com eletrodo de aço em polaridade direta (gás de proteção Ar+5%O2). As soldas, em posição plana, foram filmadas em alta velocidade através da técnica da perfilografia. Determinou-se experimentalmente características da transferência metálica (diâmetro das gotas e sua freqüência de destacamento e o comprimento do arco elétrico), bem como as características cinemáticas e dinâmicas das transferências metálicas obtidas nesses experimentos (velocidade de chegada das gotas à poça de fusão; aceleração média das gotas durante a trajetória; quantidade de movimento efetiva das gotas) e a geometria dos cordões de solda, comparados sempre que possível a resultados experimentais e numéricos disponíveis na literatura. Os resultados mostraram que a corrente e o comprimento do arco influenciam as características cinemáticas e dinâmicas das gotas em todas as condições estudadas, que o gás de proteção não exerce influência significativa nas características avaliadas, que a polaridade do eletrodo só afeta as características cinemáticas e dinâmicas no modo de transferência globular e que a quantidade de movimento efetiva das gotas influencia claramente a penetração do cordão de solda apenas quando associada à mudança no modo de transferência de globular para goticular. Adicionalmente, a corrente de soldagem afetou a penetração das soldas, mesmo utilizando-se aproximadamente o mesmo calor imposto, o comprimento do arco afetou a penetração das soldas de aço e alumínio e com diferentes gases de proteção, o gás de proteção não exerceu influência nos valores da penetração, mas alterou a forma do cordão e a polaridade não exerceu influência na penetração da solda, mas apenas na sua largura e reforço, sendo mais esbelto o cordão de solda em polaridade direta. / Doutor em Engenharia Mecânica

The techniques for estimating the fractal dimension of signals have been widely applied in the description of many physical systems, from studies of atmospheric turbulence, EEG signals, water systems to studies on the behavior of fractal surfaces fractured by impact. The analysis of the fractal dimension of complex phenomena has become an important tool to quantify the degree of irregularity of artificial or natural phenomena. In this paper we investigate the fractal dimension of the signal voltage of the arc processode MIG / MAG welding. The estimation technique used for calculating the fractal dimension of the signals in the study was the method box couting. It was verified that rapid changes in the values ​​of fractal dimension were associated with the phenomenon of metal transfer. Shows the signal analyzed in the time domain, the photographic pictures of the metal transfer, obtained by the technique of shadowgrafia, and programs used to obtain the graphs, calculating the fractal dimension as well as statistics of the signals welding. In the literature review is made a presentation of the electric arc welding considering only its physical aspects. It appears the method used in calculating the fractal dimension of signals. Are also treated the electron emission mechanisms, the process of welding MIG / MAG, the phenomenon of metal transfer in MIG / MAG and the forces involved during metal transfer. / As tÃcnicas de estimativa da dimensÃo fractal de sinais tÃm sido amplamente aplicadas na descriÃÃo de inÃmeros sistemas fÃsicos, desde estudos sobre turbulÃncia atmosfÃrica, sinais de eletroencefalograma, sistemas hidrolÃgicos atà estudos sobre o comportamento fractal de superfÃcies fraturadas por impacto. A anÃlise da dimensÃo fractal de fenÃmenos complexos passou a ser uma ferramenta importante para quantificar o grau de irregularidade de fenÃmenos artificias ou naturais. Neste trabalho investigou-se a dimensÃo fractal dos sinais de tensÃo do arco voltaico do processode soldagem MIG/MAG. A tÃcnica de estimativa empregada para o cÃlculo da dimensÃo fractal no estudo dos sinais foi o mÃtodo box couting. PÃde-se verificar que variaÃÃes bruscas nos valores da dimensÃo fractal estavam associadas com o fenÃmeno da transferÃncia metÃlica. SÃo apresentados os sinais analisados, no domÃnio do tempo, os quadros fotogrÃficos da transferÃncia metÃlica, obtidos pela tÃcnica de shadowgrafia, e os programas utilizados para obtenÃÃo dos grÃficos, cÃlculo da dimensÃo fractal e tambÃm de dados estatÃsticos dos sinais de soldagem. Na revisÃo bibliogrÃfica à feita uma apresentaÃÃo do arco elÃtrico de soldagem considerando-se apenas seus aspectos fÃsicos. à apresentado o mÃtodo empregado no cÃlculo da dimensÃo fractal dos sinais. SÃo tratados tambÃm os mecanismos de emissÃo eletrÃnica, o processo de soldagem MIG/MAG, o fenÃmeno da transferÃncia metÃlica no processo MIG/MAG e as forÃas envolvidas durante a transferÃncia metÃlica.

No description available.

This thesis describes advancements in the modelling, optimisation, process control and mechanical performance of novel high deposition rate gas metal arc welding processes for large scale additive manufacturing applications. One of the main objectives of this study was to develop fundamental understanding of the mechanisms involved during processing with particular focus on single layer welds made of carbon steel using both pulsed-current gas metal arc welding and cold metal transfer processes. The effects of interactions between critical welding process variables and weld bead and plate fusion characteristics are studied for single and multi-layers. It was shown that several bead and plate fusion characteristics are strongly affected by the contact tip to work distance, TRIM, wire feed speed, wire feed speed to travel speed ratio, and wire diameter in pulsed-current gas metal arc welding. The arc-length control, dynamic correction and the contact tip to work distance are shown to strongly influence the weld bead geometry in the cold metal transfer process. This fundamental knowledge was essential to ensure the successful development of predictive interaction models capable of determining the weld bead geometry from the welding process parameters. The models were developed using the least-squares analysis and multiple linear regression method. The gas tungsten constricted arc welding process was utilised for the first time for out-of-chamber fabrication of a large scale and high-quality Ti-6Al-4V component. The main focus was, however, in the use of the cold metal transfer process for improving out-of-chamber deposition of Ti-6Al-4V at much higher deposition rates. The effect of the cold metal transfer process on the grain refinement features in the fusion zone of single layer welds under different torch gas shielding conditions was investigated. It was shown that significant grain refinement occurs with increasing helium content. The morphological features and static mechanical performance of the resulting multi-layered Ti-6Al-4V walls were also examined and compared with those in gas tungsten constricted arc welding. The results show that a considerable improvement in static tensile properties is obtained in both testing directions with cold metal transfer over gas tungsten constricted arc welding. It was suggested that this improvement in the mechanical behaviour could be due to the formation of more fine-grained structures,which are therefore more isotropic. The average ultimate tensile strength and yield strength of the as-deposited Ti-6Al-4V material processed via cold metal transfer meet the minima specification values recommended for most Ti-6Al-4V products. Neutron diffraction technique was used to establish the effect of repeated thermo-mechanical cycling on the generation, evolution and distribution of residual stresses during wire and arc additive manufacturing. The results show a significant redistribution of longitudinal residual stresses along both the substrate and multi-bead with repeated deposition. However, a nearly complete relaxation occurs along the built, once the base plate constraint is removed.

This dissertation presents an investigation of micromachined three-dimensional microelectrode arrays (3-D MEAs) targeted toward in-vitro and in-vivo biomedical applications. Current 3-D MEAs are predominantly silicon-based, fabricated in a planar fashion, and are assembled to achieve a true 3-D form: a technique that cannot be extended to micro-manufacturing. The integrated 3-D MEAs developed in this work are polymer-based and thus offer potential for large-scale, high volume manufacturing. Two different techniques are developed for microfabrication of these MEAs - laser micromachining of a conformally deposited polymer on a non-planar surface to create 3-D molds for metal electrodeposition; and metal transfer micromolding, where functional metal layers are transferred from one polymer to another during the process of micromolding thus eliminating the need for complex and non-repeatable 3-D lithography processes. In-vitro and in-vivo 3-D MEAs are microfabricated using these techniques and are packaged utilizing Printed Circuit Boards (PCB) or other low-cost manufacturing techniques. To demonstrate in-vitro applications, growth of 3-D co-cultures of neurons/astrocytes and tissue-slice electrophysiology with brain tissue of rat pups were implemented. To demonstrate in-vivo application, measurements of nerve conduction were implemented. Microelectrode impedance models, noise models and various process models were evaluated. The results confirmed biocompatibility of the polymers involved, acceptable impedance range and noise of the microelectrodes, and potential to improve upon an archaic clinical diagnostic application utilizing these 3-D MEAs.