Effects of Scanning Strategy on the Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Sc-Zr-Modified Al–Mg Alloy Manufactured by Laser Powder Bed Fusion

Abstract

Laser powder bed fusion (LPBF)-manufactured Sc-Zr-modified Al–Mg alloy (Scalmalloy) has a bimodal microstructure comprising coarse grains (CGs) in the hot melt pool area and ultrafine grains (UFGs) along the melt pool boundaries (MPBs). Owing to these microstructural features, an increase in the MPBs can increase the UFGs, leading to enhanced mechanical properties. However, the effects of the LPBF process parameters, especially the laser scan strategy, on the microstructure and mechanical properties of Scalmalloy are still unclear. Here, a comparative study was conducted between X- and XY-mode laser scan strategies, with the same volumetric energy, based on the melt pool configuration, grain size distribution, and precipitation behaviors. The X-scan exhibited mechanical properties superior to those exhibited by the XY-scan, attributed to the higher volume fraction (VF) of UFGs. An increase in the VF of UFGs was observed, from 46% for the XY-scan to 56% for the X-scan, owing to an increase in MPBs. Consequently, the tensile strength of the X-scan was higher than that of the XY-scan. The maximum yield strength (271.5 ± 2.7 MPa) was obtained for the X-scan strategy, which was approximately twice that obtained for casting. The results of this study demonstrate that the microstructure and mechanical properties of Scalmalloy can be successfully tuned by a laser scanning strategy.