Selective Laser Melting Parametric Optimization for Microhardness of 17-4 PH Stainless Steel

Abstract

The 17-4 PH stainless steel is a structural material possessing inherent properties suitable for employment in industrial applications. Selective Laser Melting (SLM) technology has overcome many shortcomings of conventional processing routes to fabricate structural parts possessing higher hardness and strength. Hardness is the most dominant factor that affects the quality of structural parts. Laser power, scan speed, and hatch distance affect the microhardness of 17-4 PH stainless steel parts. Taguchi method is applied to conduct experiments and perform statistical analysis and optimization for higher microhardness of SLM parts. Laser power showed the highest contribution equal to 87.76%, followed by a scan speed of 12.05% and hatch distance of 0.18% towards microhardness. The Taguchi method determined the optimal conditions (laser power: 300 W, scan speed: 1000 mm/s and hatch distance: 0.08 mm) resulting in a higher microhardness value equal to 351.2 HV.