The effect of process parameters on the physical and mechanical properties of Ti fabricated by selective laser melting using ball milled powders

Abstract

In this study, influences of the processing parameters on the physical and mechanical properties of Ti parts fabricated by selective laser melting (SLM) using ball milled powders were investigated systematically. Single-tracks experiment indicated that when significant depth (dint) of the molten pool overlap area was greater than 68.49 μm and a high-quality morphology of the molten pool was formed, fully dense SLM-ed samples can be obtained. The tensile strength and elongation of SLM-ed samples fabricated at different process parameters were in the range of 940–985 MPa and 9.5–17.3%, respectively. When the laser beam power, scan speed and hatch spacing were 175 W, 600 mm/s, and 0.09 mm, respectively, the samples exhibited the highest mechanical properties with a tensile strength of 985.4 MPa and an elongation of 17.3%, which exceeded the ASTM B265-15 Ti-6Al-4V alloy level. The outcomes of this work have facilitated in developing titanium parts using low-cost modified HDH-Ti powder, and have also opened many dimensions for future investigations.