Manufacturability of AlSi10Mg overhang structures fabricated by laser powder bed fusion

Han, Quanquan, Gu, Heng, Soe, Shwe, Setchi, Rossi ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7207-6544, Lacan, Franck ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3499-5240 and Hill, Jacob 2018. Manufacturability of AlSi10Mg overhang structures fabricated by laser powder bed fusion. Materials & Design 160 , pp. 1080-1095. 10.1016/j.matdes.2018.10.043

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Abstract

The main advantage of laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) is its use for directly manufacturing metal components with highly complex geometries. But the LPBF manufacture of overhang structures, also known as downward-facing surfaces, is a challenge because of the possibility of incurring distortion and dross defects. This paper presents a systematic examination of the manufacturability and structural integrity of AlSi10Mg overhang structures fabricated by LPBF using computational and experimental techniques. The experimental and simulation results indicate that the use of support structures facilitates the manufacturability and structural integrity of both full-circle and half-circle overhang structures. The influence of supports on circularity was found to be more beneficial as the diameter increased above 15 mm. The experiments also suggest that the use of supports plays a significant role in maintaining mechanical performance by successful fabrication of downward-facing surfaces free of dross defects. From a design perspective, small overhang features are preferable to large overhangs, especially when support removal is impractical. This study significantly contributes to design for metal additive manufacturing by providing an improved understanding of the manufacturability of overhang structures in applications intended for lightweight structural performance.

Item Type:	Article
Date Type:	Publication
Status:	Published
Schools:	Engineering
Publisher:	Elsevier
ISSN:	0264-1275
Date of First Compliant Deposit:	12 November 2018
Date of Acceptance:	29 October 2018
Last Modified:	06 Nov 2023 17:20
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/116476

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