Influences of Surface, Heat Treatment, and Print Orientation on the Anisotropy of the Mechanical Properties and the Impact Strength of Ti 6Al 4V Processed by Laser Powder Bed Fusion

Abstract

The scope of this work is to provide an overview of the influences of process parameters, print orientation, and post-process treatments of Ti6AlV4 processed by laser powder bed fusion on its microstructure and physical and mechanical properties and their anisotropic behavior. To avoid the influence of changes in powder quality and ensure comparability, experiments were carried out using a single batch of virgin powder. First, characterization of the density and surface roughness was performed to optimize the process parameters utilizing design of experiment. Tensile, notched bar impact and compression test specimens were built in three different orientations: vertically, horizontally, and inclined at 45° to the build plate. Later, the influence of the staircase effect and the possible course of anisotropy from vertical to horizontal were investigated. Subsequently, heat treatments for stress relief, furnace annealing, and hot isostatic pressing were performed. In addition to as-built samples, mechanical machining and a two-step electrochemical polishing surface treatment were applied to investigate the influence of the surface roughness. With parameter optimization, a relative density of 99.8% was achieved, and surface roughness was improved over default parameters, reducing Ra by up to 7 µm. Electrochemical polishing is a viable way to decrease the surface roughness. An Ra value of 1 µm and an Rz value of 4 µm can be achieved for 45° downskin surfaces with as-built surface roughness values of Ra 24 µm and Rz 117 µm. As-built and stress-relieved conditions show little anisotropy in their yield and tensile strength (max 2.7%), but there is a strong influence of the build orientation on necking, and brittle fracture behavior is shown due to the martensitic microstructure (up to 70%). Heat treatment can increase the ductility and further decrease the strength anisotropy with both furnace annealing and hot isostatic pressing delivering similar results for tensile properties, while angled samples exhibit behavior that is closer to vertical than horizontal, indicating a non-linear change in break behavior. Electrochemical polishing increases fracture necking, and its isotropy drastically increases from 4% to over 30% compared with as-built parts, which is close to the level of the machined specimen.

Effect of Surface Finishing State on Fatigue Strength of Cast Aluminium and Steel Alloys

“…This process is typically carried out manually, but in order to reduce the human influence for highly reproducible surface properties, vibratory finishing appears to be a useful alternative. In addition, electrochemical polishing is an alternative to manual polishing, but requires additional etching equipment and high-current power sources [ 38 ]. Whereas polishing primarily targets a reduction of the surface roughness, vibratory finishing offers as side effect a modification of the surface layer regarding residual stress state and hardness distribution, as introduced in Section 1 .…”

“…Moreover, welded structures can be treated by HFMI to improve fatigue strength due to local work hardening and compressive residual stresses [ 36 , 37 ]. In contrast, surface treatment by electrochemical polishing leads to a high surface quality but does not evoke residual stresses [ 38 ]. Recent additive manufacturing technologies (3D/4D printing) feature multi-material composite design enabling tailored layer-based properties [ 39 ].…”

Manufacturing of Metal–Polymer Hybrid Parts Using a Desktop 3-Axis Fused Filament Fabrication 3D-Printer

“…Thus, in this case, the metal substrate (stringer) was 3D-printed by LPBF, mostly replicating dimensions used on the PA-CF stringer from Demonstrator 1 (see Figure 4). This was performed on an EOS 280 printer, using a laser power of 280 W, as well as a layer thickness of 30 µm, a hatching distance of 140 µm and a printing speed of 1200 mm/s [34]. Commercially available Ti-6Al-4V powder (D50 = 33.6 µm) was used as a feedstock, with characteristics such as particle size distribution and chemical composition reported in [34].…”

“…This was performed on an EOS 280 printer, using a laser power of 280 W, as well as a layer thickness of 30 µm, a hatching distance of 140 µm and a printing speed of 1200 mm/s [34]. Commercially available Ti-6Al-4V powder (D50 = 33.6 µm) was used as a feedstock, with characteristics such as particle size distribution and chemical composition reported in [34]. The stringer was 3D-printed with a leaning angle of 90 • , meaning that the building direction was the one indicated by the arrow in Figure 4b.…”

“…characteristics such as particle size distribution and chemical composition reported in [34]. The stringer was 3D-printed with a leaning angle of 90°, meaning that the building direction was the one indicated by the arrow in Figure 4b.…”