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Geometric influence of the laser-based powder bed fusion process in Ti6AL4V and AlSi10Mg

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Abstract

Many studies have shown that the mechanical properties and geometric accuracy of additive manufacturing parts are dependent of many factors such as laser energy density, build orientation, and heat transfer histories. Amongst the factors, heat transfer histories are highly dependent on the geometry of a part, resulting in influencing the mechanical properties and microstructure evolution due to the repeated heating and cooling process. Heat transfer histories are associated with material thermal properties which include thermal conductivity, thermal diffusivity, specific heat capacity, and temperature gradient. The objective of this paper is to understand and observe the microstructure evolution process and microhardness based on variation in geometrical characteristic of the laser-based powder bed fusion (L-PBF). This paper presents the effect of the geometric factors on the mechanical properties and geometric accuracy during the L-PBF process, which benefit future process optimisation and modelling. In this study, samples with varying wall thickness are fabricated in TI6AL4Vand AlSi10Mg alloys by L-PBF. The samples are systematically evaluated by the optical microscope and the Vickers hardness tester. Microstructural characterisation of these samples is further evaluated via scanning electron microscopy. The results show that there is a signification relationship between material thermal properties, microstructure evolution, and mechanical properties with respect to the variation in wall thickness. These results can be used to understand the material thermal behaviour in lattice structures with a thin or small-sized feature and serve as a design guideline to indirectly control the microstructure of a L-PBF part.

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The data and material are available upon request from the corresponding author.

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Funding

This research was supported by the Singapore Centre for 3D Printing (SC3DP), the National Research Foundation, Prime Minister’s Office, Singapore, under its Medium-Sized Centre funding scheme, Natural Science Foundation of Hebei Province (Project No. F2020208018), and Funding for Introduction of Overseas Researcher of Hebei Province (Project No. C20190331).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Technical Education, School of Engineering (Mechanical Engineering), ITE College East, 10 Simei Avenue, Singapore, 486047, Singapore

    Zhong Yang Chua

  2. Singapore Centre for 3D Printing, School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, 50 Nanyang Avenue, Singapore, 639798, Singapore

    Zhong Yang Chua & Seung Ki Moon

  3. Hebei Key Laboratory of Material Near-Net Forming Technology, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Hebei University of Science and Technology, Shijiazhuang, 050018, China

    Lishi Jiao

  4. Department of Mechanical Engineering, Tongmyong University, Busan, 48520, South Korea

    II Hyuk Ahn

Authors
  1. Zhong Yang Chua
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  2. Seung Ki Moon
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Contributions

Conceptualisation—Zhong Yang Chua and II Hyuk Ahn

Formal analysis—Zhong Yang Chua, Lishi Jiao and Seung Ki Moon

Investigation—Zhong Yang Chua and II Hyuk Ahn

Methodology—Zhong Yang Chua, Lishi Jiao, II Hyuk Ahn and Seung Ki Moon

Supervision—Lishi Jiao, II Hyuk Ahn and Seung Ki Moon

Validation—Zhong Yang Chua and Lishi Jiao

Writing original draft—Zhong Yang Chua

Review and editing—Lishi Jiao, II Hyuk Ahn and Seung Ki Moon

Project adminstration—Seung Ki Moon

Funding acquisition—Seung Ki Moon and Lishi Jiao

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Seung Ki Moon.

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Chua, Z.Y., Moon, S.K., Jiao, L. et al. Geometric influence of the laser-based powder bed fusion process in Ti6AL4V and AlSi10Mg. Int J Adv Manuf Technol 114, 3165–3176 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00170-021-07089-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00170-021-07089-0

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