We used ultrahigh-speed synchrotron x-ray imaging to quantify the phenomenon of vapor depressions (also known as keyholes) during laser melting of metals as practiced in additive manufacturing. Although expected from welding and inferred from postmortem cross sections of fusion zones, the direct visualization of the keyhole morphology and dynamics with high-energy x-rays shows that (i) keyholes are present across the range of power and scanning velocity used in laser powder bed fusion; (ii) there is a well-defined threshold from conduction mode to keyhole based on laser power density; and (iii) the transition follows the sequence of vaporization, depression of the liquid surface, instability, and then deep keyhole formation. These and other aspects provide a physical basis for three-dimensional printing in laser powder bed machines.
We employ the high-speed synchrotron hard X-ray imaging and diffraction techniques to monitor the laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) process of Ti-6Al-4V in situ and in real time. We demonstrate that many scientifically and technologically significant phenomena in LPBF, including melt pool dynamics, powder ejection, rapid solidification, and phase transformation, can be probed with unprecedented spatial and temporal resolutions. In particular, the keyhole pore formation is experimentally revealed with high spatial and temporal resolutions. The solidification rate is quantitatively measured, and the slowly decrease in solidification rate during the relatively steady state could be a manifestation of the recalescence phenomenon. The high-speed diffraction enables a reasonable estimation of the cooling rate and phase transformation rate, and the diffusionless transformation from β to α
’ phase is evident. The data present here will facilitate the understanding of dynamics and kinetics in metal LPBF process, and the experiment platform established will undoubtedly become a new paradigm for future research and development of metal additive manufacturing.
The core of a nuclear reactor presents exceptionally stringent requirements for structuralmaterialsduetoitshightemperatureandintenseradiationaswellasitsneed for unfailing mechanical integrity [1][2][3][4] . Thus, candidate materials for nuclear applications must possess excellent irradiation tolerance, high strength, and thermal stability.However,thesepropertiesaredifficulttorealizesimultaneouslyinonematerialbecause of apparently intrinsic tradeoffs between them. Here we report a novel interface engineering strategy that simultaneously achieves superior irradiation tolerance, high strength, and high thermal stability in bulk nanolayered (NL) Cu-Nb composites. By synthesizing bulk NL Cu-Nb composites containing interfaces with controlled sink efficiencies, we design a material in which nearly all irradiation-induced defects are
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