The emergence of ferrous-medium entropy alloys (FeMEAs) with excellent tensile properties represents a potential direction for designing alloys based on metastable engineering. In this study, an FeMEA is successfully fabricated using laser powder bed fusion (LPBF), a metal additive manufacturing technology. Tensile tests are conducted on the LPBF-processed FeMEA at room temperature and cryogenic temperatures (77 K). At 77 K, the LPBF-processed FeMEA exhibits high yield strength and excellent ultimate tensile strength through active deformation-induced martensitic transformation. Furthermore, due to the low stability of the face-centered cubic (FCC) phase of the LPBF-processed FeMEA based on nano-scale solute heterogeneity, stress-induced martensitic transformation occurs, accompanied by the appearance of a yield point phenomenon during cryogenic tensile deformation. This study elucidates the origin of the yield point phenomenon and deformation behavior of the FeMEA at 77 K.
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Aluminum alloys, known for their high strength-to-weight ratios and impressive electrical and thermal conductivities, are extensively used in numerous engineering sectors, such as aerospace, automotive, and construction. Recently, significant efforts have been made to develop novel aluminum alloys specifically tailored for additive manufacturing. These new alloys aim to provide an optimal balance between mechanical properties and thermal/ electrical conductivities. In this study, nine combinatorial samples with various alloy compositions were fabricated using direct energy deposition (DED) additive manufacturing by adjusting the feeding speeds of Al6061 alloy and Al-12Si alloy powders. The effects of the alloying elements on the microstructure, electrical conductivity, and hardness were investigated. Generally, as the Si and Cu contents decreased, electrical conductivity increased and hardness decreased, exhibiting trade-off characteristics. However, electrical conductivity and hardness showed an optimal combination when the Si content was adjusted to below 4.5 wt%, which can sufficiently suppress the grain boundary segregation of the α- Si precipitates, and the Cu content was controlled to induce the formation of Al2Cu precipitates.
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Boron carbide (B4C) is highly significant in the production of lightweight protective materials when added to aluminum owing to its exceptional mechanical properties. In this study, a method for fabricating Al-B4C composites using high-energy ball milling and directed energy deposition (DED) is presented. Al-4 wt.% B4C composites were fabricated under 21 different laser conditions to analyze the microstructure and mechanical properties at different values of laser power and scan speeds. The composites fabricated at a laser power of 600 W and the same scan speed exhibited the highest hardness and generated the fewest pores. In contrast, the composites fabricated at a laser power of 1000 W exhibited the lowest hardness and generated a significant number of large pores. This can be explained by the influence of the microstructure on the energy density at different values of laser power.
Aluminum alloys are widely utilized in diverse industries, such as automobiles, aerospace, and architecture, owing to their high specific strength and resistance to oxidation. However, to meet the increasing demands of the industry, it is necessary to design new aluminum alloys with excellent properties. Thus, a new method is required to efficiently test additively manufactured aluminum alloys with various compositions within a short period during the alloy design process. In this study, a combinatory approach using a direct energy deposition system for metal 3D printing process with a dual feeder was employed. Two types of aluminum alloy powders, namely Al6061 and Al-12Cu, were utilized for the combinatory test conducted through 3D printing. Twelve types of Al-Si-Cu-Mg alloys were manufactured during this combinatory test, and the relationship between their microstructures and properties was investigated.
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Metal additive manufacturing (AM) has transformed conventional manufacturing processes by offering unprecedented opportunities for design innovation, reduced lead times, and cost-effective production. Aluminum alloy, a material used in metal 3D printing, is a representative lightweight structural material known for its high specific strength and corrosion resistance. Consequently, there is an increasing demand for 3D printed aluminum alloy components across industries, including aerospace, transportation, and consumer goods. To meet this demand, research on alloys and process conditions that satisfy the specific requirement of each industry is necessary. However, 3D printing processes exhibit different behaviors of alloy elements owing to rapid thermal dynamics, making it challenging to predict the microstructure and properties. In this study, we gathered published data on the relationship between alloy composition, processing conditions, and properties. Furthermore, we conducted a sensitivity analysis on the effects of the process variables on the density and hardness of aluminum alloys used in additive manufacturing.
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Aluminum alloy-based additive manufacturing (AM) has emerged as a popular manufacturing process for the fabrication of complex parts in the automotive and aerospace industries. The addition of an inoculant to aluminum alloy powder has been demonstrated to effectively reduce cracking by promoting the formation of equiaxed grains. However, the optimization of the AM process parameters remains challenging owing to their variability. In this study, the response surface methodology (RSM) was used to predict the crack density of AM-processed Al alloy samples. RSM was performed by setting the process parameters and equiaxed grain ratio, which influence crack propagation, as independent variables and designating crack density as a response variable. The RSM-based quadratic polynomial models for crack-density prediction were found to be highly accurate. The relationship among the process parameters, crack density, and equiaxed grain fraction was also investigated using RSM. The findings of this study highlight the efficacy of RSM as a reliable approach for optimizing the properties of AM-processed parts with limited experimental data. These results can contribute to the development of robust AM processing strategies for the fabrication of highquality Al alloy components for various applications.
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Because magnets fabricated using Nd-Fe-B exhibit excellent magnetic properties, this novel material is used in various high-tech industries. However, because of the brittleness and low formability of Nd-Fe-B magnets, the design freedom of shapes for improving the performance is limited based on conventional tooling and postprocessing. Laserpowder bed fusion (L-PBF), the most famous additive manufacturing (AM) technique, has recently emerged as a novel process for producing geometrically complex shapes of Nd-Fe-B parts owing to its high precision and good spatial resolution. However, because of the repeated thermal shock applied to the materials during L-PBF, it is difficult to fabricate a dense Nd-Fe-B magnet. In this study, a high-density (>96%) Nd-Fe-B magnet is successfully fabricated by minimizing the thermal residual stress caused by substrate heating during L-PBF.
Recently, considerable attention has been given to nickel-based superalloys used in additive manufacturing. However, additive manufacturing is limited by a slow build rate in obtaining optimal densities. In this study, optimal volumetric energy density (VED) was calculated using optimal process parameters of IN718 provided by additive manufacturing of laser powder-bed fusion. The laser power and scan speed were controlled using the same ratio to maintain the optimal VED and achieve a fast build rate. Cube samples were manufactured using seven process parameters, including an optimal process parameter. Analysis was conducted based on changes in density and melt-pool morphology. At a low laser power and scan speed, the energy applied to the powder bed was proportional to
AlSi10Mg alloys are being actively studied through additive manufacturing for application in the automobile and aerospace industries because of their excellent mechanical properties. To obtain a consistently high quality product through additive manufacturing, studying the flowability and spreadability of the metal powder is necessary. AlSi10Mg powder easily forms an oxide film on the powder surface and has hydrophilic properties, making it vulnerable to moisture. Therefore, in this study, AlSi10Mg powder was hydrophobically modified through silane surface treatment to improve the flowability and spreadability by reducing the effects of moisture. The improved flowability according to the number of silane surface treatments was confirmed using a Carney flowmeter. In addition, to confirm the effects of improved spreadability, the powder prior to surface treatment and that subjected to surface treatment four times were measured and compared using s self-designed recoating tester. The results of this study confirmed the improved flowability and spreadability based on the modified metal powder from hydrophilic to hydrophobic for obtaining a highquality additive manufacturing product.
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The effect of the laser beam diameter on the microstructure and hardness of 17-4 PH stainless steel manufactured via the directed energy deposition process is investigated. The pore size and area fraction are much lower using a laser beam diameter of 1.0 mm compared with those observed using a laser beam diameter of 1.8 mm. Additionally, using a relatively larger beam diameter results in pores in the form of incomplete melting. Martensite and retained austenite are observed under both conditions. A smaller width of the weld track and overlapping area are observed in the sample fabricated with a 1.0 mm beam diameter. This difference appears to be mainly caused by the energy density based on the variation in the beam diameter. The sample prepared with a beam diameter of 1.0 mm had a higher hardness near the substrate than that prepared with a 1.8 mm beam diameter, which may be influenced by the degree of melt mixing between the 17-4 PH metal powder and carbon steel substrate.
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Aluminum alloys are extensively employed in several industries, such as automobile, aerospace, and architecture, owing to their high specific strength and electrical and thermal conductivities. However, to meet the rising industrial demands, aluminum alloys must be designed with both excellent mechanical and thermal properties. Computer-aided alloy design is emerging as a technique for developing novel alloys to overcome these trade-off properties. Thus, the development of a new experimental method for designing alloys with high-throughput confirmation is gaining focus. A new approach that rapidly manufactures aluminum alloys with different compositions is required in the alloy design process. This study proposes a combined approach to rapidly investigate the relationship between the microstructure and properties of aluminum alloys using a direct energy deposition system with a dual-nozzle metal 3D printing process. Two types of aluminum alloy powders (Al-4.99Si-1.05Cu-0.47Mg and Al-7Mg) are employed for the 3D printing-based combined method. Nine types of Al-Si-Cu-Mg alloys are manufactured using the combined method, and the relationship between their microstructures and properties is examined.