Toward understanding the microstructure characteristics,phase selection and magnetic properties of laser additive manufactured Nd-Fe-B permanent magnets

Nd-Fe-B permanent magnets play a crucial role in energy conversion and electronic devices.The essential magnetic properties of Nd-Fe-B magnets,particularly coercivity and remanent magnetization,are significantly infuenced by the phase characteristics and microstructure.In this work,Nd-Fe-B magnets were manufactured using vacuum induction melting(VIM),laser directed energy deposition(LDED)and laser powder bed fusion(LPBF)technologies.Themicrostructure evolution and phase selection of Nd-Fe-B magnets were then clarified in detail.The results indicated that the solidification velocity(V)and cooling rate(R)are key factors in the phase selection.In terms of the VIM-casting Nd-Fe-B magnet,a large volume fraction of theα-Fe soft magnetic phase(39.7 vol.%)and Nd2Fe17Bxmetastable phase(34.7 vol.%)areformed due to the low R(2.3×10-1?C s-1),whereas only a minor fraction of the Nd2Fe14B hard magnetic phase(5.15 vol.%)is presented.For the LDED-processed Nd-Fe-B deposit,although the Nd2Fe14B hard magnetic phase also had a low value(3.4 vol.%)as the values of V(<10-2m s-1)and R(5.06×103?C s-1)increased,part of theα-Fe soft magnetic phase(31.7vol.%)is suppressed,and a higher volume of Nd2Fe17Bxmetastable phases(47.5 vol.%)areformed.As a result,both the VIM-casting and LDED-processed Nd-Fe-B deposits exhibited poor magnetic properties.In contrast,employing the high values of V(>10-2m s-1)and R(1.45×106?C s-1)in the LPBF process resulted in the substantial formation of the Nd2Fe14B hard magnetic phase(55.8 vol.%)directly from the liquid,while theα-Fe soft magnetic phase and Nd2Fe17Bxmetastable phase precipitation are suppressed in the LPBF-processed Nd-Fe-B magnet.Additionally,crystallographic texture analysis reveals that the LPBF-processedNd-Fe-B magnets exhibit isotropic magnetic characteristics.Consequently,the LPBF-processed Nd-Fe-B deposit,exhibiting a coercivity of 656 k A m-1,remanence of 0.79 T and maximum energy product of 71.5 k J m-3,achieved an acceptable magnetic performance,comparable to other additive manufacturing processed Nd-Fe-B magnets from MQP(Nd-lean)Nd-Fe-Bpowder.

Post processing of additive manufactured Mg alloys:Current status,challenges,and opportunities

Magnesium(Mg)and its alloys are emerging as a structural material for the aerospace,automobile,and electronics industries,driven by the imperative of weight reduction.They are also drawing notable attention in the medical industries owing to their biodegradability and a lower elastic modulus comparable to bone.The ability to manufacture near-net shape products featuring intricate geometries has sparked huge interest in additive manufacturing(AM)of Mg alloys,reflecting a transformation in the manufacturing sectors.However,AM of Mg alloys presents more formidable challenges due to inherent properties,particularly susceptibility to oxidation,gas trapping,high thermal expansion coefficient,and low solidification temperature.This leads to defects such as porosity,lack of fusion,cracking,delamination,residual stresses,and inhomogeneity,ultimately influencing the mechanical,corrosion,and surface properties of AM Mg alloys.To address these issues,post-processing of AM Mg alloys are often needed to make them suitable for application.The present article reviews all post-processing techniques adapted for AM Mg alloys to date,including heat treatment,hot isostatic pressing,friction stir processing,and surface peening.The utilization of these methods within the hybrid AM process,employing interlayer post-processing,is also discussed.Optimal post-processing conditions are reported,and their influence on the microstructure,mechanical,and corrosion properties are detailed.Additionally,future prospects and research directions are proposed.

Additive manufactured osseointegrated screws with hierarchical design

Bone screws are devices used to fix implants or bones to bones.However,conventional screws are mechanically fixed with thread and often face long-term failure due to poor osseointegration.To improve osseointegration,screws are evolving from solid and smooth to porous and rough.Additive manufacturing(AM)offers a high degree of manufacturing freedom,enabling the preparation of predesigned screws that are porous and rough.This paper provides an overview of the problems currently faced by bone screws:long-term loosening and screw breakage.Next,advances in osseointegrated screws are summarized hierarchically(sub-micro,micro,and macro).At the sub-microscale level,we describe surface-modification techniques for enhancing osseointegration.At the micro level,we summarize the micro-design parameters that affect the mechanical and biological properties of porous osseointegrated screws,including porosity,pore size,and pore shape.In addition,we highlight three promising pore shapes:triply periodic minimal surface,auxetic structure with negative Poisson ratio,and the Voronoi structure.At the macro level,we outline the strategies of graded design,gradient design,and topology optimization design to improve the mechanical strength of porous osseointegrated screws.Simultaneously,this paper outlines advances in AM technology for enhancing the mechanical properties of porous osseointegrated screws.AM osseointegrated screws with hierarchical design are expected to provide excellent long-term fixation and the required mechanical strength.

Effect of grain refinement induced by wire and arc additive manufacture (WAAM) on the corrosion behaviors of AZ31 magnesium alloy in NaCl solution

Additive manufacturing(AM)of Mg alloys has become a promising strategy for producing complex structures,but the corrosion performance of AM Mg components remains unexploited.In this study,wire and arc additive manufacturing(WAAM)was employed to produce single AZ31 layer.The results revealed that the WAAM AZ31 was characterized by significant grain refinement with non-textured crystallographic orientation,similar phase composition and stabilized corrosion performance comparing to the cast AZ31.These varied corrosion behaviors were principally ascribed to the size of grain,where cast AZ31 and WAAM AZ31 were featured by micro galvanic corrosion and intergranular corrosion,respectively.

Additive Manufacture of Ceramics Components by Inkjet Printing

In order to build a ceramic component by inkjet printing, the object must be fabricated through the interaction and solidification of drops, typically in the range of 10–100 p L. In order to achieve this goal, stable ceramic inks must be developed. These inks should satisfy specific rheological conditions that can be illustrated within a parameter space defined by the Reynolds and Weber numbers. Printed drops initially deform on impact with a surface by dynamic dissipative processes, but then spread to an equilibrium shape defined by capillarity. We can identify the processes by which these drops interact to form linear features during printing, but there is a poorer level of understanding as to how 2D and 3D structures form. The stability of 2D sheets of ink appears to be possible over a more limited range of process conditions that is seen with the formation of lines. In most cases, the ink solidifies through evaporation and there is a need to control the drying process to eliminate the "coffee ring" defect. Despite these uncertainties, there have been a large number of reports on the successful use of inkjet printing for the manufacture of small ceramic components from a number of different ceramics. This technique offers good prospects as a future manufacturing technique. This review identifies potential areas for future research to improve our understanding of this manufacturing method.

Microstructure evolution and mechanical properties of laser additive manufactured Ti-5Al-2Sn-2Zr-4Mo-4Cr alloy

The microstructure, microhardness and tensile properties of laser additive manufactured (LAM) Ti?5Al?2Sn?2Zr?4Mo?4Cr alloy were investigated. The result shows that the microstructure evolution is strongly affected by the thermal history of LAM process. Primary α (αp) with different morphologies, secondary α (αs) and martensite α' can be observed at different positions of the LAMed specimen. Annealing treatment can promote the precipitation of rib-like α phase or acicular α phase. As a result, it can increase or decrease the microhardness. The as-deposited L-direction and T-direction specimens contain the same phase constituent with different morphologies. The tensile properties of the as-deposited LAMed specimens are characterized of anisotropy. The L-direction specimen shows the character of low strength but high ductility when compared with the T-direction specimen. After annealing treatment, the strength of L-direction specimen increases significantly while the ductility reduces. The strength of the annealed T-direction specimen changes little, however, the ductility reduces nearly by 50%.

Microstructure and mechanical properties of additive manufactured steel-Al structure materials with nickel gradient layers

The microstructure and mechanical properties of steel/Al structure material produced by additive manufacturing （AM） was investigated in this work based on the cold metal transfer welding. The results show that the microstructure gradually changed from the steel side to the aluminum side. The microstructure in the steel layer consisted of vermiform like ferrite and anstenite structure, while in the aluminum layer the microstructure was constituted by c^-A1 grains and typical reticulate distributive Al-Si eutectic structure. Besides, a 7 y.m thickness Ni-Al intermetallic compound layer was emerged at the interface of nickel and aluminum layer. The maximum room-temperature tensile strength of the Steel-Al structure materials was found to be 54 MPa, the rupture morphology showed a brittle fracture characteristic.

Effect of Nd addition on microstructure and tensile properties of laser additive manufactured TC11 titanium alloy

Single-layer and multilayer laser additive manufacturing(LAM)for TC11 alloy with different Nd additions was conducted and the effect of Nd addition on microstructure and properties was studied.With the addition of Nd,the aspect ratio of melting pools of single-layer specimens increases and the columnar-to-equiaxed transition occurs.The originalβgrain size andαplate width of TC11−1.0Nd are significantly reduced compared with those of pure TC11 specimens.It is proposed that the evenly distributed fine Nd_(2)O_(3) precipitates of about 1.51μm are formed preferentially during rapid solidification of melting pool,and they serve as heterogeneous nucleation particles to refine the microstructure in the subsequent solidification and solid-state phase transformation.Due to the multiple effects of Nd on the microstructure,the ultimate tensile strength of TC11−1.0Nd increases,while the yield strength,ductility and microhardness decrease compared with those of pure TC11.

Mechanical property and biological behaviour of additive manufactured TiNi functionally graded lattice structure

Bio-inspired porous metallic scaffolds have tremendous potential to be used as artificial bone substitutes.In this work,a radially graded lattice structure (RGLS),which mimics the structures of natural human bones,was designed and processed by laser powder bed fusion of martensitic Ti-rich TiNi powder.The asymmetric tension-compression behaviour,where the compressive strength is significantly higher than the tensile strength,is observed in this Ti-rich TiNi material,which echoes the mechanical behaviour of bones.The morphologies,mechanical properties,deformation behaviour,and biological compatibility of RGLS samples were characterised and compared with those in the uniform lattice structure.Both the uniform and RGLS samples achieve a relative density higher than 99%.The graded porosities and pore sizes in the RGLS range from 40%-80% and 330-805 µm,respectively,from the centre to the edge.The chemical etching has significantly removed the harmful partially-melted residual powder particles on the lattice struts.The compressive yield strength of RGLS is 71.5 MPa,much higher than that of the uniform sample (46.5 MPa),despite having a similar relative density of about 46%.The calculated Gibson-Ashby equation and the deformation behaviour simulation by finite element suggest that the dense outer regions with high load-bearing capability could sustain high applied stress,improving the overall strength of RGLS significantly.The cell proliferation study suggests better biological compatibility of the RGLS than the uniform structures.The findings highlight a novel strategy to improve the performance of additively manufactured artificial implants by bio-inspiration.

Electrochemical dissolution and passivation of laser additive manufactured Ti6Al4V controlled by elements segregation and phases distribution

The electrochemical dissolution and passivation of laser additive manufactured Ti6Al4V were investigated through Tafel polarization,potentiostatic polarization and AC impedance measurements.The results show that the solution treatment−aging(STA)process aggravates the element micro-segregation compared to the annealing process,leading to varied Al and V contents of the phases from different samples.It is proven that either Al-rich or V-rich condition can highly affect the electrochemical dissolution behaviors due to thermodynamical instability caused by element segregation.The dissolution rate in the metastable passivation process is controlled by the stability of the produced film that is affected by phases distribution,especially the difficult-to-dissolve phase.And then,the dissolution rate of the phases in the transpassivation region is consistent with the rank in the activation process because the dense film is not capable of being produced.Compared to the annealed sample,the higher dissolution rate of the STA sample is beneficial to the electrochemical machining(ECM)of Ti6Al4V.

Microstructure and mechanical properties of laser additive manufactured novel titanium alloy after heat treatment

A novel α+β titanium alloy with multi-alloying addition was designed based on the cluster formula 12[Al-Ti_(12)](AlTi_(2))+5[Al-Ti_(14)](AlV_(1.2)Mo_(0.6)Nb_(0.2))which was derived from Ti-6Al-4V.The nominal composition of this novel alloy was determined as Ti-6.83Al-2.28V-2.14Mo-0.69Nb-6.79Zr.In this study,the novel alloy and Ti-6Al-4V alloy samples were prepared by laser additive manufacturing.The microstructure,micro-hardness,room/high temperature tensile properties of the as-deposited samples were investigated.Compared to Ti-6Al-4V,the novel alloy has much higher room and high temperature(600℃)tensile strengths,which are 1,427.5 MPa and 642.2 MPa,respectively;however,it has a much lower elongation(3.2%)at room temperature because of the finer microstructure.To improve the elongation of the novel alloy,heat treatment was used.After solution at 960℃ or 970℃ for 1 h followed by air cooling and aging at 550℃ for 4 h followed by air cooling,a unique bi-modal microstructure which contains crab-like primaryαand residual β phase is obtained,improving the compression elongation by 80.9% compared to the as-deposited samples.The novel alloy can be used as a high-temperature and high-strength candidate for laser additive manufacturing.

Analysis of the corrosion performance of binder jet additive manufactured magnesium alloys for biomedical applications

Binder jet printing(BJP)is a state-of-the-art additive manufacturing technique for producing porous magnesium structures.Porous MgZn-Zr based BJP samples were assessed for corrosion performance in simulated body fluids by electrochemical and hydrogen evolution measurements.The corrosion rates of the BJP specimens were significantly higher than solid controls,even after accounting for their larger surface areas,suggesting that the BJP microstructure is detrimental to corrosion performance.X-ray computed tomography revealed nonuniform corrosion within the porous structure,with corrosion products forming on the pore walls.Impregnating the pores with hydroxyapatite or polymers greatly improved the corrosion resistance of the BJP samples.

Microstructure and Corrosion Resistance of Arc Additive Manufactured 316L Stainless Steel

The gas tungsten arc welding based additive manufacturing (GTAW-AM) was carried out by printing 316L austenitic stainless steel on carbon steel substrate with different arc currents (140,160,180 A).Microstructure and corrosion resistance of additive manufactured components were investigated.The results show that the microstructure of the GTAW-AM austenitic stainless steel is obviously changed by the arc current.With arc current increasing from 140 to 180 A,the austenite grains become coarse due to the effect of welding heat input.Meanwhile,the quantity of ferrites in the austenite matrix is decreased and the morphology transforms from lath to skeleton.Moreover,σ phases are finally formed under the arc currents of 180 A owing to high welding heat input.Therefore,as the microstructure transform into coarse-grained austenites,low-quantity ferrites and new-generated σ phases,the GTAW-AM austenitic stainless steel presents a significantly decrease in corrosion resistance.And the reduction of corrosion resistance is mainly due to the formation of σ phase as a result from consuming the large amounts of Cr element from the matrix.

Effect of processing parameters on formability, microstructure, and micro-hardness of a novel laser additive manufactured Ti-6.38Al-3.87V-2.43Mo alloy

A novel Ti-6.38Al-3.87V-2.43Mo alloy was designed with a cluster formula of 12[Al-Ti12](V0.75Mo0.25Ti2)+4[Al-Ti12](Al3)by replacing Ti with Mo/V on the basis of the Ti-Al congruent alloy.The effects of laser power and scanning speed on the molten pool size,surface roughness,relative density,microstructure,and micro-hardness of single-track and bulk Ti-6.38Al-3.87V-2.43Mo samples prepared via laser additive manufacturing(LAM)were investigated.The results show that processing parameters significantly affect the formability,microstructure,and micro-hardness of the alloy.With decreasing laser power from 1,900 W to 1,000 W,the relative density is decreased from 99.86%to 90.91%due to the increase of lack-of-fusion;however,with increasing scanning speed,the relative density does not change significantly,but exceeds 99%.In particular,Ti-6.38Al-3.87V-2.43Mo samples of single-track and bulk exhibit a good formability under an input laser power of 1,900 W and a scanning speed of 8 mm·s_(-1),and display the lowest surface roughness(Ra=13.33μm)and the highest relative density(99.86%).Besides,the microstructure of LAM Ti-6.38Al-3.87V-2.43Mo alloy coarsens with increasing laser power or decreasing scanning speed due to the greater input energy reducing the cooling rate.The coarsening of the microstructure decreases the microhardness of the alloy.

Wire Arc Additive Manufactured CuMn_(13)Al_(7)High-Manganese Aluminium Bronze

In this work,high-manganese aluminium bronze CuMn_(13)Al_(7)samples were prepared by arc additive manufacturing technology.The phase composition,microstructure,and crystal structure of the high-manganese aluminium bronze CuMn_(13)Al_(7)arc additive manufactured samples were analysed using direct-reading spectrometer,metallographic microscope,scanning electron microscope,and transmission electron microscope.The micro-hardness tester,tensile tester,impact tester,and electrochemical workstation were also used to test the performance of the CuMn_(13)Al_(7)samples.By studying the microstructure and properties of the CuMn_(13)Al_(7)samples,it was found that preparation of the samples by the arc additive manufacturing technology ensured good forming quality,almost no defects,and good metallurgical bonding inside the sample.The metallographic structure(α+β+point phase)mainly comprises the following:the metallographic structure in the equiaxed grain region has an obvious grain boundaryα;the metallographic structure in the remelting region has no obvious grain boundaryα;the thermal influence on the metallographic structure produced a weaker grain boundaryαthan the equiaxed grain region.The transverse and longitudinal cross sections of the sample had uniform microhardness distributions,and the average microhardness values were 190.5 HV0.1 and 192.7 HV0.1,respectively.The sample also had excellent mechanical properties:yield strength of 301 MPa,tensile strength of 633 MPa,elongation of 43.5%,reduction of area by 58%,Charpy impact value of 68 J/cm^(2)at–20℃,and dynamic potential polarisation curve test results.Further,it was shown that the average corrosion potential of the sample was–284.5 mV,and the average corrosion current density was 4.1×10–3 mA/cm^(2).

Numerical simulation of laser ultrasonic detection of the surface microdefects on laser powder bed fusion additive manufactured 316L stainless steel

A numerical model is presented in this article to investigate the interactions between laser generated ultrasonic and the microdefects(0.01 to 0.1 mm),which are on the surface of the laser powder bed fusion additive manufactured 316L stainless steel.Firstly,the influence of the transient sound field and detection positions on Rayleigh wave signals are investigated.The interactions between the varied microdefects and the laser ultrasonic are studied.It is shown that arrival time of reflected Rayleigh(RR)waves wave is only related to the location of defects.The depth can be checked from the feature point Q,the displacement amplitude and time delay of converted transverse(RS)wave,while the width information can be evaluated from the RS wave time delay.With the aid of fitting curves,it is found to be linearly related.This simulation study provides a theoretical basis for quantitative detection of surface microdefects of additive manufactured 316L stainless steel components.

Effect of thermo-mechanical treatment on microstructure and mechanical properties of wire-arc additively manufactured Al-Cu alloy

Wire-arc additive manufacture(WAAM)has great potential for manufacturing of Al-Cu components.However,inferior mechanical properties of WAAM deposited material restrict its industrial application.Inter-layer cold rolling and thermo-mechanical heat treatment(T8)with pre-stretching deformation between solution and aging treatment were adopted in this study.Their effects on hardness,mechanical properties and microstructure were analyzed and compared to the conventional heat treatment(T6).The results show that cold rolling increases the hardness and strengths,which further increase with T8 treatment.The ultimate tensile strength(UTS)of 513 MPa and yield stress(YS)of 413 MPa can be obtained in the inter-layer cold-rolled sample with T8 treatment,which is much higher than that in the as-deposited samples.The cold-rolled samples show higher elongation than that of as-deposited ones due to significant elimination of porosity in cold rolling;while both the T6 and T8 treatments decrease the elongation.The cold rolling and pre-stretching deformation both contribute to the formation of dense and dispersive precipitatedθ′phases,which inhibits the dislocation movement and enhances the strengths;as a result,T8 treatment shows better strengthening effect than the T6 treatment.The strengthening mechanism was analyzed and it was mainly related to work hardening and precipitation strengthening.

Towards high-strength cold spray additive manufactured metals:Methods,mechanisms,and properties

Cold spray,as a solid-state additive manufacturing process,has been attracting increasing attention from both scientific and industrial communities.However,cold-sprayed deposits generally have unfavorable mechanical properties in their as-fabricated state compared to conventionally manufactured and fusion-based additive-manufactured counterparts due to the inherent microstructural defects in the deposits(e.g.,porosity and incomplete interparticle bonding).This downside reduces its competitiveness and limits its wide applications as an additive manufacturing process.In the past years,many strengthening technologies have been developed or introduced to adjust the microstructure and improve the mechanical properties of cold-sprayed deposits.The term“strengthening”in this work specifically refers to improving the mechanical strength,particularly the tensile strength of the cold-sprayed bulk deposits.According to the stage that the strengthening technologies are used in the cold spray process,they can be classified into three categories:pre-process(e.g.,powder heat treatment),in-process(e.g.,powder heating,in-situ micro-forging,laser-assisted cold spray),and post-process(e.g.,post heat treatment,hot isostatic pressing,hot rolling,friction stir processing).Therefore,a comprehensive review of these strengthening technolo-gies is conducted to illuminate the possible correlations between the strengthening mechanisms and the resultant deposit microstructures and mechanical properties.This review paper aims to help researchers and engineers well understand the different strengthening methods and provide guidance for the cold spray community to develop new strengthening strategies for future high-quality mass production.

Additively manufactured Ti–Ta–Cu alloys for the next-generation load-bearing implants

Bacterial colonization of orthopedic implants is one of the leading causes of failure and clinical complexities for load-bearing metallic implants. Topical or systemic administration of antibiotics may not offer the most efficient defense against colonization, especially in the case of secondary infection, leading to surgical removal of implants and in some cases even limbs. In this study, laser powder bed fusion was implemented to fabricate Ti3Al2V alloy by a 1:1 weight mixture of CpTi and Ti6Al4V powders. Ti-Tantalum(Ta)–Copper(Cu) alloys were further analyzed by the addition of Ta and Cu into the Ti3Al2V custom alloy. The biological,mechanical, and tribo-biocorrosion properties of Ti3Al2V alloy were evaluated. A 10 wt.% Ta(10Ta) and 3 wt.% Cu(3Cu) were added to the Ti3Al2V alloy to enhance biocompatibility and impart inherent bacterial resistance. Additively manufactured implants were investigated for resistance against Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus strains of bacteria for up to 48 h. A 3 wt.% Cu addition to Ti3Al2V displayed improved antibacterial efficacy, i.e.78%–86% with respect to CpTi. Mechanical properties for Ti3Al2V–10Ta–3Cu alloy were evaluated, demonstrating excellent fatigue resistance, exceptional shear strength, and improved tribological and tribo-biocorrosion characteristics when compared to Ti6Al4V. In vivo studies using a rat distal femur model revealed improved early-stage osseointegration for alloys with10 wt.% Ta addition compared to CpTi and Ti6Al4V. The 3 wt.% Cu-added compositions displayed biocompatibility and no adverse infammatory response in vivo. Our results establish the Ti3Al2V–10Ta–3Cu alloy’s synergistic effect on improving both in vivo biocompatibility and microbial resistance for the next generation of load-bearing metallic implants.

Customized heat treatment process enabled excellent mechanical properties in wire arc additively manufactured Mg-RE-Zn-Zr alloys

Customized heat treatment is essential for enhancing the mechanical properties of additively manufactured metallic materials,especially for alloys with complex phase constituents and heterogenous microstructure.However,the interrelated evolutions of different microstructure features make it difficult to establish optimal heat treatment processes.Herein,we proposed a method for customized heat treatment process exploration and establishment to overcome this challenge for such kind of alloys,and a wire arc additively manufactured(WAAM)Mg-Gd-Y-Zn-Zr alloy with layered heterostructure was used for feasibility verification.Through this method,the optimal microstructures(fine grain,controllable amount of long period stacking ordered(LPSO)structure and nano-scaleβ'precipitates)and the corresponding customized heat treatment processes(520°C/30 min+200°C/48 h)were obtained to achieve a good combination of a high strength of 364 MPa and a considerable elongation of 6.2%,which surpassed those of other state-of-the-art WAAM-processed Mg alloys.Furthermore,we evidenced that the favorable effect of the undeformed LPSO structures on the mechanical properties was emphasized only when the nano-scaleβ'precipitates were present.It is believed that the findings promote the application of magnesium alloy workpieces and help to establish customized heat treatment processes for additively manufactured materials.