A Review of Research Progress in Selective Laser Melting (SLM)

Abstract

SLM (Selective Laser Melting) is a unique additive manufacturing technology which plays an irreplaceable role in the modern industrial revolution. 3D printers can directly process metal powder quickly to obtain the necessary parts faster. Shortly, it will be possible to manufacture products at unparalleled speeds. Advanced manufacturing technology is used to produce durable and efficient parts with different metals that have good metal structure performance and excellent metal thermal performance, to lead the way for laser powder printing technology. Traditional creative ways are usually limited by time, and cannot respond to customers’ needs fast enough; for some parts with high precision and complexity, conventional manufacturing methods are inadequate. Contrary to this, SLM technology offers some advantages, such as requiring no molds this decreases production time and helps to reduce costs. In addition, SLM technology has strong comprehensive functions, which can reduce assembly time and improve material utilization. Parts with complex structures, such as cavities and three-dimensional grids, can be made without restricting the shape of products. Products or parts can be printed quickly without the use of expensive production equipment. The product quality is better, and the mechanical load performance is comparable to traditional production technologies (such as forging). This paper introduces in detail the process parameters that affect SLM technology and how they affect SLM, commonly used metal materials and non-metallic materials, and summarizes the current research. Finally, the problems faced by SLM are prospected.

A Brief Review of Current Trends in the Additive Manufacturing of Orthopedic Implants with Thermal Plasma-Sprayed Coatings to Improve the Implant Surface Biocompatibility

“…The results of the study [23] showed that the ability of cells to vascularize and the proportion of bone area on scaffolds with pores of irregular size were stronger and larger, respectively, than on regular ones, while the mechanical properties of irregular scaffolds were better than those of regular ones. Gao B. et al (2023) in a review article [24] note the advantage of SLM over other 3D printing technologies, such as the aforementioned EBM, DED (Directed Energy Deposition), or DMLS (Direct Metal Laser Sintering), as the ability to produce a product with high mechanical load capacity, no worse than traditional processes, and even better than forging. However, high porosity reduces the mechanical strength of the implant, which is a challenge.…”

“…It should also be noted that in a review article [24], poor surface roughness is noted as a disadvantage of SLM technology; however, there are currently no systematic studies on how SLM or SLS (Selective Laser Sintering) parameters affect the surface roughness of scaffolds or the relationship between roughness and biocompatibility of scaffolds [26]. Thus, it can be assumed that the high roughness values achieved in the SLM process (for example, the average roughness Ra = 26.6 ± 3.4 µm of 3D printed tensile specimens of the titanium alloy Ti6Al4V mentioned in [19]) may increase the biocompatibility of 3D printed titanium implants.…”

3D Printing‐Enabled Design and Manufacturing Strategies for Batteries: A Review

“…It is often common to see rougher surface finishes after printing, which requires post‐processing (i.e., polishing, etching, coating), typically due to the particle size, distribution, shape regularity, diffusion of particles with the neighboring ones, and fluidity affecting the smoothness and thickness of the layer. [ 158 ] Generally, these 3D printing methods for batteries mostly produce a dot or line size above 10 µm and may lose the resolution below a single‐digit micron size.…”

Recent Advancements in Material Waste Recycling: Conventional, Direct Conversion, and Additive Manufacturing Techniques

“…Different types of materials like plastics [55,56], concrete [57,58], composites [59,60], elastomers [61,62], polymers [63][64][65], metals and alloys [66][67][68][69][70][71][72], and non-metals [73,74] can be used for developing components. Commonly used 3D printing processes for stainless steel alloys, aluminum alloys, titanium alloys, and super alloys are laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) [75][76][77][78][79][80][81][82][83] wire arc direct energy deposition [84][85][86], laser metal deposition [87,88], and additive friction stir deposition [89][90][91] processes. The current research in additive manufacturing on aluminum alloys [92][93][94][95][96][97][98][99][100][10...…”