Additive manufacturing is a technology rapidly expanding on a number of industrial sectors. It provides design freedom and environmental/ecological advantages. It transforms essentially design files to fully functional products. However, it is still hampered by low productivity, poor quality and uncertainty of final part mechanical properties. The root cause of undesired effects lies in the control aspects of the process. Optimization is difficult due to limited modelling approaches. Physical phenomena associated with additive manufacturing processes are complex, including melting/solidification and vaporization, heat and mass transfer etc. The goal of the current study is to map available additive manufacturing methods based on their process mechanisms, review modelling approaches based on modelling methods and identify research gaps. Later sections of the study review implications for closed-loop control of the process.

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Additive manufacturing methods and modelling approaches: a critical review

https://dr.ntu.edu.sg/bitstream/10356/88603/1/Anisotropy%20and%20heterogeneity%20of%20microstructure%20and%20mechanical%20properties%20in%20metal%20additive%20manufacturing-%20A%20critical%20review.pdf

Anisotropy and heterogeneity of microstructure and mechanical properties in metal additive manufacturing: A critical review

Laser-based additive manufacturing (LBAM) processes can be utilized to generate functional parts (or prototypes) from the ground-up via layer-wise cladding – providing an opportunity to generate complex-shaped, functionally graded or custom-tailored parts that can be utilized for a variety of engineering applications. Directed Energy Deposition (DED), utilizes a concentrated heat source, which may be a laser or electron beam, with in situ delivery of powder- or wire-shaped material for subsequent melting to accomplish layer-by-layer part fabrication or single-to-multi layer cladding/repair. Direct Laser Deposition (DLD), a form of DED, has been investigated heavily in the last several years as it provides the potential to (i) rapidly prototype metallic parts, (ii) produce complex and customized parts, (iii) clad/repair precious metallic components and (iv) manufacture/repair in remote or logistically weak locations. DLD and Powder Bed Fusion-Laser (PBF-L) are two common LBAM processes for additive metal part fabrication and are currently demonstrating their ability to revolutionize the manufacturing industry; breaking barriers imposed via traditional, ‘subtractive’ metalworking processes. This article provides an overview of the major advancements, challenges and physical attributes related to DLD, and is one of two Parts focused specifically on DLD. Part I (this article) focuses on describing the thermal/fluidic phenomena during the powder-fed DLD process, while Part II focuses on the mechanical properties and microstructure of parts manufactured via DLD. In this current article, a selection of recent research efforts – including methodology, models and experimental results – will be provided in order to educate the reader of the thermal/fluidic processes that occur during DLD, as well as providing important background information relevant to DLD as a whole. The thermal/fluid phenomena inherent to DLD directly influence the solidification heat transfer which thus impacts the part's microstructure and associated thermo-mechanical properties. A thorough understanding of the thermal/fluid aspects inherent to DLD is vital for optimizing the DLD process and ensuring consistent, high-quality parts.

An overview of Direct Laser Deposition for additive manufacturing; Part I: Transport phenomena, modeling and diagnostics

The mechanical behavior, and thus ‘trustworthiness’/durability, of engineering components fabricated via laser-based additive manufacturing (LBAM) is still not well understood. This is adversely affecting the continual adoption of LBAM for part fabrication/repair within the global industry at large. Hence, it is important to determine the mechanical properties of parts fabricated via LBAM as to predict their performance while in service. This article is part of two-part series that provides an overview of Direct Laser Deposition (DLD) for additive manufacturing (AM) of functional parts. The first part (Part I) provides a general overview of the thermo-fluid physics inherent to the DLD process. The objective of this current article (Part II) is to provide an overview of the mechanical characteristics and behavior of metallic parts fabricated via DLD, while also discussing methods to optimize and control the DLD process. Topics to be discussed include part microstructure, tensile properties, fatigue behavior and residual stress – specifically with their relation to DLD and post-DLD process parameters (e.g. heat treatment, machining). Methods for controlling/optimizing the DLD process for targeted part design will be discussed – with an emphasis on monitored part temperature and/or melt pool morphology. Some future challenges for advancing the knowledge in AM-part adoption are discussed. Despite various research efforts into DLD characteristics and process optimization, it is clear that there are still many areas that require further investigation.

An overview of Direct Laser Deposition for additive manufacturing; Part II: Mechanical behavior, process parameter optimization and control

In 1972, within a study of the structure-dependency of total $$\pi $$
 -electron energy (
 $${\mathcal {E}}$$
 ), it was shown that $${\mathcal {E}}$$
 depends on the sum of squares of the vertex degrees of the molecular graph (later named first Zagreb index), and thus provides a measure of the branching of the carbon-atom skeleton. In the same paper, also the sum of cubes of degrees of vertices of the molecular graph was shown to influence $${\mathcal {E}}$$
 , but this topological index was never again investigated and was left to oblivion. We now establish a few basic properties of this “forgotten topological index” and show that it can significantly enhance the physico-chemical applicability of the first Zagreb index.

A forgotten topological index

Rapid tooling by laser powder deposition : Process simulation using finite element analysis

Computer simulation of steel quenching process using a multi-phase transformation model

A semi-empirical method for selecting the processing parameter s of laser cladding is proposed. This phenomenological approach uses simple mathematical formulae, derived from a statistical analysis of measured data, to relate the laser cladding parameters with the geometric features of the clad track. Given the prescribed clad height and avai lable laser beam power, the proposed method allows to calculate values of the scanning speed and powder feed rate which are required to obtain low dilution, pore free coatings, fusion bonded to the substra te. To illustrate the application of this method, variable powder feed rate laser cladding e xperiments were carried out with Stellite 6 powder on mild steel substrates. In this technique t he laser beam power and radius and the processing speed are kept constant, while the powder feed rate is varied along a single track length according to a specified linear function. The expressions derive d from the model allowed to plot the experimental data in a coherent manner, revealing the combine d role of the different processing parameters.

Tamás Réti

Papers

Rapid tooling by laser powder deposition : Process simulation using finite element analysis

Computer simulation of steel quenching process using a multi-phase transformation model

A Simplified Semi-Empirical Method to Select the Processing Parameters for Laser Clad Coatings

On the vertex degree indices of connected graphs

A non-linear extension of the additivity rule