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Research on Process and Microstructure Formation of W-Ni-Fe Alloy Fabricated by Selective Laser Melting

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Abstract

W-Ni-Fe alloys are important materials for many practical applications; however, at present, they are usually fabricated by conventional powder metallurgy techniques, which is difficult in fabrication with complex shapes. In this work, a selective laser melting (SLM) processing method was developed for fabricating W-Ni-Fe alloys parts. A process map was obtained for selection of proper laser parameters by optimizing processing conditions. Microstructures of laser fabricated samples in different laser energy inputs were investigated. There are two coexisting forming mechanisms in the SLM process: (i) liquid phase sintering (LPS) with full melting of Ni and Fe powders but non-melting of W powders and (ii) melting/solidification with full melting of W powders. Moreover, with increasing laser energy, a transition trend of forming mechanism from LPS to full melting/solidification can be observed.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank the Open fund of State Key Laboratory of Powder Metallurgy of Central South University of China (2008112022). The authors also thank the Analytic and Testing Centre of Huazhong University of Science and Technology for their assistance.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Material Processing and Die and Mould Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430074, PR China

    Danqing Zhang, Qizhou Cai & Ruidi Li

  2. Heilongjiang Institute of Science and Technology, Harbin, 150027, PR China

    Jinhui Liu

  3. State Key Laboratory of Powder Metallurgy, Central South University, Changsha, 410083, PR China

    Jinhui Liu

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  1. Danqing Zhang
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  2. Qizhou Cai
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  3. Jinhui Liu
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  4. Ruidi Li
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Correspondence to Qizhou Cai.

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Zhang, D., Cai, Q., Liu, J. et al. Research on Process and Microstructure Formation of W-Ni-Fe Alloy Fabricated by Selective Laser Melting. J. of Materi Eng and Perform 20, 1049–1054 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11665-010-9720-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11665-010-9720-3

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