Inverse Thermal Analysis of Melting Pool in Selective Laser Melting Process

Abstract

The Selective Laser Melting (SLM) process of metallic powder is an additive technology. It allows the production of complex-shaped parts which are difficult to obtain by conventional methods. The principle is similar to Selective Laser Sintering (SLS) process: it consists, from an initial CAD model, to create the desired part layer by layer. The laser scans a powder bed of 40 μm thick. The irradiated powder is instantly melted and becomes a solid material when the laser moves away. A new layer of powder is left and the laser starts a new cycle of scanning. The sudden and intense phase changing involves high thermal gradients which induce contraction and expansion cycles in the part. These cycles results in irreversible plastic strains. The presence of residual stresses in the manufactured part can damage the mechanical properties, such as the fatigue life. This study focuses on the thermal and mechanical modelling of the SLM process. One of the key points of the mechanical modelling is the determination of the heat source generated by the laser in order to predict residual stresses. This work is divided in three parts. In a first part, an experimental protocol is established in order to measure the temperature variation during the process. In the second part, a thermal model of the process is proposed. Finally, an inverse method to determine the power and the shape of the heat source is developed. Experimental and computational results are fitted. The influence of several geometries of the heat source is investigated.