Abstract
Ti–6Al–4V alloy is a typical 3D printing metal, and its application has been expanded to various fields owing to its excellent characteristics such as high specific strength, high corrosion resistance, and biocompatibility. In particular, direct energy deposition (DED) has been actively explored in the fields of deposition and the repair of large titanium parts. However, owing to the complicated thermal history of the DED process, the microstructures of the fusion zone (FZ), heat-affected zone (HAZ), and base metal (BM) are different, which results in variations of their mechanical characteristics. Therefore, the process reliability needs to be optimized. In this study, the microstructure and hardness of each region were investigated with respect to various DED process parameters. An artificial neural network (ANN) model was used to correlate the measured characteristics of the FZ, HAZ, and BM of Ti–6Al–4V components with the process parameters. The variation in the mechanical characteristics between the FZ, HAZ, and BM was minimized through post-heat treatment. Heat treatment carried out at 950 °C for 1 h revealed that the microstructure and hardness values throughout the component were homogeneous.
Highlights
Published: 28 May 2021Titanium alloys, in particular, Ti–6Al–4V alloy, are widely used in the energy plant, aerospace, defense, and biomedical industries owing to their high specific strength and corrosion resistance [1]
The width of the fusion zone (FZ), width of the heat-affected zone (HAZ), height of the deposited material, and average columnar grain width were measured with the help of optical microscopy images
Upon heat treatment at several high temperature regions, we found that heat treatment 950 ◦ C was able to provide quite a uniform microstructure throughout the fabricated sample
Summary
In particular, Ti–6Al–4V alloy, are widely used in the energy plant, aerospace, defense, and biomedical industries owing to their high specific strength and corrosion resistance [1]. As the immediate and widespread application in these industries requires complex-shaped alloy products, the conventional manufacturing process leads to high material wastage and processing costs. Complex component repair with a near-net part is challenging for designers. An expensive partial replacement can be avoided if minor component damage is repaired. A progressive manufacturing process that can overcome the limitations of conventional manufacturing processes is needed. There has been an increasing demand for the additive manufacturing (AM)
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