Effects of the Energy Density on Pores, Hardness, Surface Roughness, and Tensile Characteristics of Deposited ASTM 316L Specimens with Powder-Bed Fusion Process

• Published in: Materials Vol. 15; no. 19; p. 6672
• Main Author: Lee, Ho-Jin
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Basel MDPI AG 26.09.2022; MDPI
• Subjects: 3D printing; additive manufacturing; ASTM 316L; Energy; energy density; Experiments; Fractures; Hardness; Heat; Laser sintering; Mechanical engineering; Mechanical properties; Oxidation; Porosity; powder bed fusion; Powder beds; Powders; Process parameters; Rapid prototyping; Specific gravity; Stainless steel; Surface roughness; Tensile strength; Titanium alloys; Ultimate tensile strength; Yield stress
• ISSN: 1996-1944; 1996-1944
• DOI: 10.3390/ma15196672

Powder bed fusion (PBF) is a typical metal-AM process. Studies on the process parameters are required to fabricate the desired shape without defects in the PBF process. The aim of this study is to investigate the effects of energy density on the pore, hardness, surface roughness, and tensile characteristics of deposited ASTM 316L specimens using a powder-bed fusion process. Twenty-seven types of specimens with different laser powers, scanning speeds, and overlap ratios were fabricated using the PBF process. The effects of the energy density on the porosity, hardness, surface roughness, tensile strength, and fracture properties of ASTM 316L specimens were examined. The relationships between these properties and energy density are discussed. A critical energy density level was suggested as 79 J/mm3 considering these characteristics. With the critical energy density level, relative density, surface roughness (Ra) and hardness were observed 99.5%, 1.2 μm, and 240 HV, respectively. Additionally, these characteristics were improved with increasing energy density. Five representative conditions were chosen to fabricate tensile specimens with the ASTM 316L powder through the PBF process. Tensile characteristics, including ultimate strength, yield strength, strain, and fracture shape, were examined for different energy densities. The best tensile characteristics were observed with the highest energy density level of 155 J/mm3.