Tool and Die Making, Surface Treatment, and Repair by Laser-based Additive Processes

Abstract

This paper explores the possibilities to use laser-based additive processes to make, surface treat and repair/remanufacture tools, dies and molds for cold working, hot working, and injection molding. The failures encountered in these applications are described. The materials used conventionally and in the laser additive processes are accounted for. The properties of the tools, dies and molds made by Laser-based Powder Bed Fusion (L-PBF) are as good as and in some cases better than the properties of those made in wrought materials. Shorter cycle time, reduced friction, smaller abrasive wear, and longer life cycle are some of the benefits of L‑PBF and Directed Energy Deposition with powder (DED-p) (or Laser Metal Deposition with powder, LMD‑p, or Laser Cladding, LC). L‑PBF leads to higher toolmaking costs and shorter toolmaking lead time. Based on a review of conducted investigations, this paper shows that it is possible to design and make tools, dies and molds for and by L‑PBF, surface functionalize them by DED-p (LMD‑p, LC), and repair/remanufacture them by DED-p (LMD‑p, LC). With efficient operational performance as the target for the whole tool life cycle, this combination of L‑PBF and DED-p (LMD‑p, LC) has the greatest potential for hot working and injection molding tools and the smallest for cold working tools (due to the current high L‑PBF and DED-p (LMD‑p, LC) costs).

Case Study of Large Three-Dimensional-Printed Slider with Conformal Cooling for High-Pressure Die Casting

“…Tools for HPDC suffer for the most part from aluminum soldering. 4 Such layers of aluminum need to be removed regularly during the casting process so that each mold lasts in the operation of the foundry for as long as possible per application and produces quality castings. The total number of repairs is shown in Table 3 .…”

“…Some of the main advantages of additive manufacturing (AM), include freedom of design, waste minimization, mass adaptation, and the ability to produce lightweight structures as determined by Ngo et al 3 Due to the limited working space of currently available 3D printers, it is not currently possible to entirely produce whole parts of molds (max 800 × 400 × 500 mm), and hence limited to creating smaller segments such as inserts and cores. 4–6 Furthermore, modern powder bed technologies also suffer from limited workspace size and low productivity. 4–6 …”

“… 4–6 Furthermore, modern powder bed technologies also suffer from limited workspace size and low productivity. 4–6 …”

“…Readers may consult references 4–6 for a comprehensive overview of the materials used to produce these tools and a list of the most common failures of mechanisms in the HPDC process, which in summary are as follows: heat checking (thermal fatigue), erosion, that is, hot mechanical wear (velocity of the melt), metal corrosion (chemical interaction Al and tool material), cracking (mechanical overloading), soldering (molten alloy sticks to the shape), shrinkage porosity (bad temperature management), and cracking from the cooling channels (high stresses based on wrong channel design, residual stress, or chemical corrosion).…”

“…However, due to the principles of L-PBF technology, it is necessary to consider specific problems (e.g., poorly chosen machining allowances and shrinkage compensation, 12 and workspace size limitations). 4 , 5 …”