Assessing the viability of high-frequency spot melting for super duplex stainless steel 2507 via electron beam powder bed fusion

Abstract

This study investigates the use of Electron Beam Powder Bed Fusion (PBF-EB) spot melting on SDSS 2507, a material known for its high tensile strength, corrosion resistance, and welding properties. Spot melting, a localized melting technique, utilize a stationary beam to create melt pools before rapidly repositioning to form new ones, offering precise control over material properties in additive manufacturing. We conducted a design of experiments with 32 samples and analysed them using SEM, XRD, EBSD, optical microscopy, nanoindentation and statistical modelling.Elevated PBF-EB processing temperatures significantly influence microstructure and phase composition. XRD analysis identified the presence of the detrimental sigma phase. EBSD analysis revealed a composition primarily consisting of austenite (63 %) and sigma phase (33.5 %), with residual ferrite (3.5 %). Statistical modelling demonstrated that a combination of spot-time, spot distance, focus offset, and layer thickness was the most reliable predictor for density while area energy proved to be the most accurate predictor for hardness, with R2adj values of 0.766 and 0.802, respectively.Our study confirms that PBF-EB is capable of processing SDSS 2507 through spot melting, resulting in high-density samples at high productivity rates. The presence of sigma phase shows a need for post build heat treatment to achieve the desired phase distribution. This research enhances the understanding of the process and also holds promise for industrial applications.