Now showing 1 - 4 of 4
  • Publication
    Correlating in-situ process monitoring data with the reduction in load bearing capacity of selective laser melted Ti–6Al–4V porous biomaterials
    Selective Laser Melting allows for the creation of intricate porous structures, that possess favourable biological properties. These structures are known as porous biomaterials. The focus of this paper is to evaluate the use of an in-line photodiode based process monitoring system, for the monitoring of the operational behaviour of the laser, and to correlate this with the resultant parts mechanical performance. In this study the production scale Renishaw 500M was used to produce porous structures, using Ti–6Al–4V feedstock powder. During the process, a co-axial process monitoring system was utilised to generate data relating to both the meltpool and the operational behaviour of the laser. An advanced scanning technique was used to produce the structures, whereby the laser parameters determine the strut dimensions. In this study, the laser input energy was reduced by 33%, 66% and 100%, at specific layers within the structures. Computer Tomography and Scanning Electron Microscopy was utilised to characterise the affected struts within the structures, while quasi-static compression testing was used to determine the structure's mechanical properties. It was demonstrated that as the level of input energy decreased and the number of affected layers increased, a corresponding decrease in the load bearing capacity of the structures occurred. With the structures experiencing a significant loss in strength also exhibiting a change in the failure mode during compression testing. Data generated during the processing of such structures was compared to the data generated during the processing of control structures, with the difference between the two been calculated on a layer-by-layer basis. A clear correlation was demonstrated between the total level of deviation between the two signal sets and a reduction in the load bearing capacity of the structures. This indicates that by comparing build data to a benchmark data set, valuable information relating to the structural integrity of the porous structures can be obtained.
    Scopus© Citations 9  149
  • Publication
    Application of in situ process monitoring to optimise laser parameters during laser powder bed fusion printing of Ti-6Al-4V parts with overhang structures
    (Springer Science and Business Media LLC, 2023-12-15) ; ; ; ;
    Enhanced levels of alloy print defects such as porosity are associated with the printing of overhang structures by laser powder bed fusion (L-PBF). This study compared the microstructure and porosity of Ti-6Al-4V overhang structures, with that observed for the bulk alloy. It was observed in the region around the overhang structure that the microstructure exhibited larger grain sizes and was less homogenous, compared to the that obtained within the bulk alloy. An increased level of porosity of up to 0.08% was also observed in the overhang print alloy, compared with the corresponding < 0.02% in the alloy bulk. It is hypothesised that these microstructural changes are associated with the excess heat generated in the overhang region, due to the decreased thermal conductivity of the powder immediately below the print layers, compared with solid alloy. During L-PBF alloy printing, in situ process monitoring of the melt pool emissions was obtained in the near-infrared range and correlated with the properties of the printed parts. This in-process data was used to assist in selecting optimal laser processing conditions, in order to help prevent melt pool overheating at the overhang. By systematically controlling the laser energy during the printing of the first fifteen layers over the overhang structure, the level of porosity was reduced, to the < 0.02% level of the bulk alloy. There was also an associated reduction in the roughness (Ra) of the overhang itself, with its Ra decreasing from 62.4 ± 7.3 to 7.5 ± 1.9 µm.
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  • Publication
    Influence of process parameters on the correlation between in-situ process monitoring data and the mechanical properties of Ti-6Al-4V non-stochastic cellular structures
    Selective Laser Melting (SLM) facilitates the formation of complex, stochastic or non-stochastic, metallic cellular structures. There is a high level of interest in these structures recently, particularly due to their high strength to weight ratios and osteoconductive properties. While the ability to in-situ monitor the SLM process is of key importance for future quality control methods. In this work lattice structures were fabricated, using the single exposure scanning strategy, on a Renishaw 500M SLM machine. The build process was also monitored using a co-axial in-situ process monitoring system. It was found that by increasing the energy input, through increasing the laser power and/or exposure time, the lattice strut diameters, within the 1.5 mm diamond unit cells, increased from 119 to 293 μm, resulting in the major pore diameter decreasing from 1106 to 932 μm. The effect of systematically altering the laser beam spot size on the cellular structures was also evaluated. It was observed that by doubling the laser beam spot size, that there was a 17% reduction in strut diameter and a 22% reduction in mechanical strength of the structures. It was also observed that at constant energy input levels, the lattice structures created using a focused laser exhibited an 81% lower mechanical strength than the structures created using a de-focused laser. Thus, demonstrating that the mode of energy input is critical to achieving the desired strength in these structures. Based on the outputs from the in-situ monitoring system, a broadly linear correlation was obtained between the laser input energy, the associated process monitoring data generated and the mechanical strength of the lattice structures.
      299Scopus© Citations 21
  • Publication
    Selective laser melting of Ti-6Al-4V: Comparing μCT with in-situ process monitoring data
    Additive Manufacturing (AM) is increasingly used for the fabrication of metallic components used in the medical device, aerospace and automotive industries. With the wider adoption of AM in these sectors, there is an increased demand for the in-situ process monitoring of the build process. This study investigates the performance of a photodiode based, co-axial in-situ process monitoring (PM) system, during the Selective laser melting (SLM) of Ti6Al4V alloy parts. The PM system measures the optical and thermal emissions created by the meltpool, as well as the intensity and stability of the laser during the SLM process. The process monitoring software then creates a 2D or 3D representation of the part, based on the signal intensity recorded.The Ti6Al4V alloy parts were manufactured containing internal cavities, with diameters/width’s in the range of 200–600 mm, while varying the input energy between 32.9 and 131.6 J/mm3. A close correlation was established between the laser monitoring photodiode signal intensity and the laser energy input. Along with this, an increase in signal intensity recorded, by the meltpool monitoring photodiode, was observed when the first capping layer above a cavity, was processed by the laser. Further to this, it wasshown that only the first layer was influence by the overhang, with the signal generated by the layersdirectly above this remaining unaffected. In addition to providing data on the laser energy during thebuild process, the PM system also provided valuable information regarding the intensity of the meltpool.A comparison was made between the dimensional measurements obtained using PM software, with those obtained through CT scanning of the parts, post build. It was found that for the 600 mm cavities that the measurements were, at best, within 1.7% of each other. This closeness of such measurements however decreased very significantly as the size of the cavities decreased, with a variation for example, of up to 32%been obtained, for 400 mm cavities.
    Scopus© Citations 8  87