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Large temperature gradients inherent to additive manufacturing (AM) processes induce large residual stress (RS) in the final part. Because RS can influence the tribological properties, this study focuses on the relationship between wear sliding properties and RS in IN718 coatings. Such coatings were deposited with a Laser metal deposition (LMD) machine using two different scanning strategies.
The wear resistance and RS state were investigated after surface milling. RS were measured before and after wear tests on a reciprocating sliding test apparatus.
Two different X-ray diffraction techniques were employed to measure the surface and subsurface state RS: Laboratory Energy Dispersive X-ray Diffraction (LEDXD) and Synchrotron X-ray Energy Dispersive Diffraction (SXEDD). Due to the milling process, the coatings show similar depth distributions of RS from 22 to 92 μm depth, but exhibit different magnitudes depending on the scanning strategy used. Reciprocating sliding wear tests induced high compressive residual stresses that erased the initial RS state, and a similar wear behavior was observed in the two samples. These samples possess similar texture and grain morphology. This demonstrates that the influence of RS on wear resistance is a second-order effect. Nevertheless, it was observed that RS can still impact the wear performance at the early testing stages of the repaired parts.
The microstructure of an apatite-wollastonite (code name AP40) glass-ceramic is analyzed in this study by combining 2D microscopy, phase analysis, X-ray absorption and synchrotron X-ray refraction computed tomography (XCT and SXRCT, respectively). It is shown that this combination provides a useful toolbox to characterize the global microstructure in a wide scale range, from sub-micrometer to millimeter. The material displays a complex microstructure comprising a glassy matrix with embedded fluorapatite and wollastonite small crystals. In this matrix, large (up to 200 μm) spike-shaped structures are distributed. Such microstructural features are oriented around a central sphere, thereby forming a structure resembling a sea urchin. A unique feature of SXRCT, in contrast to XCT, is that internal interfaces are visualized; this allows one to show the 3D distribution of these urchins with exceptionally good contrast. Furthermore, it is revealed that the spike-shaped structures are not single crystals, but rather composed of sub-micrometric crystals, which are identified as fluorapatite and diopside phases by SEM-EDX analysis.
The safe fatigue design of metallic components fabricated by additive manufacturing (AM) is still a largely unsolved problem. This is primarily due to (a) a significant inhomogeneity of the material properties across the component; (b) defects such as porosity and lack of fusion as well as pronounced surface roughness of the asuilt components; and (c) residual stresses, which are very often present in the as‐built parts and need to be removed by post‐fabrication treatments. Such morphological and microstructural features are very different than in conventionally manufactured parts and play a much bigger role in determining the fatigue life. The above problems require specific solutions with respect to the identification of the critical (failure) sites in AM fabricated components. Moreover, the generation of representative test specimens characterized by similar temperature cycles needs to be guaranteed if one wants to reproducibly identify the critical sites and establish fatigue assessment methods taking into account the effect of defects on crack initiation and early propagation. The latter requires fracture mechanics‐based approaches which, unlike common methodologies, cover the specific characteristics of so‐called short fatigue cracks. This paper provides a discussion of all these aspects with special focus on components manufactured by laser powder bed fusion (L‐PBF). It shows how to adapt existing solutions, identifies fields where there are still gaps, and discusses proposals for potential improvement of the damage tolerance design of L‐PBF components
This article is an outcome of a workshop on Fatigue of Additive Manufactured Metallic Components jointly organized by the Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing (BAM) Berlin, Germany and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Boulder, CO, U.S.A. The aim of the workshop was a comprehensive discussion of the specific aspects of additively manufactured (AM) components in regard to failure under cyclic loading. Undoubtedly, a better understanding and the further development of approaches for damage tolerant component design of AM parts are among the most significant challenges currently facing the use of these new technologies.
This article presents a thorough overview of the workshop discussions. It aims to provide a review of the parameters affecting the damage tolerance of AM parts with special emphasis on the process parameters intrinsic to the AM technologies, the resulting defects and residual stresses. Based on these aspects, concepts for damage tolerant component design for AM are reviewed and critically discussed.
The printability of artificial defects inside the additively manufactured laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) 316L stainless steel is investigated. The printing parameters of the LPBF process are optimized to produce artificial defects with reproducible sizes at desired positions while minimizing redundant porosity. The smallest obtained artificial defect is 90 μm in diameter. The accuracy of the geometry of the printed defect depends on both the height and the diameter in the input model. The effect of artificial defects on the very-high-cycle fatigue (VHCF) behavior of LPBF 316L stainless steel is also studied. The specimens printed with artificial defects in the center are tested under VHCF using an ultrasonic machine. Crack initiation is accompanied by the formation of a fine granular area (FGA), typical of VHCF. Despite the presence of relatively large artificial defects, FGA formation is observed around accidental natural printing defects closer to the surface, which can still be considered as internal. The causes for this occurrence are discussed.
Additive manufacturing (AM) of metals and in particular laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) enables a degree of freedom in design unparalleled by conventional subtractive methods. To ensure that the designed precision is matched by the produced LPBF parts, a full understanding of the interaction between the laser and the feedstock powder is needed. It has been shown that the laser also melts subjacent layers of material underneath. This effect plays a key role when designing small cavities or overhanging structures, because, in these cases, the material underneath is feed-stock powder. In this study, we quantify the extension of the melt pool during laser illumination of powder layers and the defect spatial distribution in a cylindrical specimen. During the LPBF process, several layers were intentionally not exposed to the laser beam at various locations, while the build process was monitored by thermography and optical tomography. The cylinder was finally scanned by X-ray computed tomography (XCT). To correlate the positions of the unmolten layers in the part, a staircase was manufactured around the cylinder for easier registration. The results show that healing among layers occurs if a scan strategy is applied, where the orientation of the hatches is changed for each subsequent layer. They also show that small pores and surface roughness of solidified material below a thick layer of unmolten material (>200 µm) serve as seeding points for larger voids. The orientation of the first two layers fully exposed after a thick layer of unmolten powder shapes the orientation of these voids, created by a lack of fusion.
The damage mechanisms of metallic components produced by process laser powder bed fusion differ significantly from those typically observed in conventionally manufactured variants of the same alloy. This is due to the unique microstructures of additively manufactured materials. Herein, the focus is on the study of the evolution of creep damage in stainless steel 316L specimens produced by laser powder bed fusion. X-ray computed tomography is used to unravel the influence of the process-specific microstructure from the influence of the initial void distribution on creep damage mechanisms. The void distribution of two specimens tested at 600 °C and 650 °C is analyzed before a creep test, after an interruption, and after fracture. The results indicate that the formation of damage is not connected to the initial void distribution. Instead, damage accumulation at grain boundaries resulting from intergranular cracking is observed.
Rapid cooling rates and steep temperature gradients are characteristic of additively manufactured parts and important factors for the residual stress formation. This study examined the influence of heat accumulation on the distribution of residual stress in two prisms produced by Laser Powder Bed Fusion (LPBF) of austenitic stainless steel 316L. The layers of the prisms were exposed using two different border fill scan strategies: one scanned from the centre to the perimeter and the other from the perimeter to the centre. The goal was to reveal the effect of different heat inputs on samples featuring the same solidification shrinkage. Residual stress was characterised in one plane perpendicular to the building direction at the mid height using Neutron and Lab X-ray diffraction. Thermography data obtained during the build process were analysed in order to correlate the cooling rates and apparent surface temperatures with the residual stress results. Optical microscopy and micro computed tomography were used to correlate defect populations with the residual stress distribution. The two scanning strategies led to residual stress distributions that were typical for additively manufactured components: compressive stresses in the bulk and tensile stresses at the surface. However, due to the different heat accumulation, the maximum residual stress levels differed. We concluded that solidification shrinkage plays a major role in determining the shape of the residual stress distribution, while the temperature gradient mechanism appears to determine the magnitude of peak residual stresses.
The quality of components made by laser beam melting (LBM) additive manufacturing is naturally influenced by the quality of the powder bed. A packing density <1 and porosity inside the powder particles lead to intrinsic voids in the powder bed. Since the packing density is determined by the particle size and shape distribution, the determination of these properties is of significant interest to assess the printing process. In this work, the size and shape distribution, the amount of the particle’s intrinsic porosity, as well as the packing density of micrometric powder used for LBM, have been investigated by means of synchrotron X-ray computed tomography (CT). Two different powder batches were investigated: Ti–6Al–4V produced by plasma atomization and stainless steel 316L produced by gas atomization. Plasma atomization particles were observed to be more spherical in terms of the mean anisotropy compared to particles produced by gas atomization. The two kinds of particles were comparable in size according to the equivalent diameter. The packing density was lower (i.e., the powder bed contained more voids in between particles) for the Ti–6Al–4V particles. The comparison of the tomographic results with laser diffraction, as another particle size measurement technique, proved to be in agreement.
Additive Manufacturing (AM) of metals has become industrially viable for a large variety of applications, including aerospace, automotive and medicine. Powder bed techniques such as Selective Laser Melting (SLM) based on layer-by-layer deposition and laser melt enable numerous degrees of freedom for the geometrical design. Developing during the manufacturing process, residual stresses may limit the application of SLM parts by reducing the load bearing capacity as well as induce unwanted distortion depending on the boundary conditions specified in manufacturing.
The residual stress distribution in the bulk of IN718 elongated prisms produced by SLM was studied non-destructively by means of neutron diffraction. The samples with different scanning strategies, i.e. hatching length, were measured in as-build condition (on a build plate) and after removal from the build plate.
The absolute values of all stress components decreased after removal from the build plate. Together with surface scan utilizing a coordinate-measuring machine (CMM), it is possible to link the stress release to the sample distortion. Obtained results indicated different residual stress states for each of the transversal, longitudinal and normal component depending on the thermal gradient in the respective direction.
The residual stress distribution in IN718 elongated prisms produced by Selective Laser Melting was studied by means of neutron (bulk) and laboratory X-ray (surface) diffraction.
Two deposition hatch lengths were considered. A horizontal plane near the top surface (perpendicular to the building direction) and a vertical plane near the lateral surface (parallel to the building direction) were investigated. Samples both in as-built (AB) condition and removed (RE) from the base plate were characterized.
While surface stress fields seem constant for AB condition, X-ray diffraction shows stress gradients along the hatch direction in the RE condition. The stress profiles correlate with the distortion maps obtained by tactile probe measurements.
Neutron diffraction shows bulk stress gradients for all principal components along the main sample directions. We correlate the observed stress patterns with the hatch length, i.e. with its effect on temperature gradients and heat flow. The bulk stress gradients partially disappear after removal from the baseplate.
This study reports the results of the preliminary assessment to fabricate Ti-10at% Nb alloy by electron beam melting (EBM®) from a blend of elemental Nb and Ti powders. The microstructure of the EBM-manufactured Ti-10at% Nb alloys is sensitive to the following factors: different sintering properties of Nb and Ti powders, powder particle properties, material viscosities at varying melt pool temperatures, β-stabilizer element content and the EBM® process parameters. Three phases were observed in as-manufactured Ti-10at% Nb alloy: μm-size Nb phase, a Nb-rich β-solid solution surrounding Nb phase, lamellar structured α-phase and β-solid solution with different distribution and volume fraction. Thus, the combination of powder particle characteristics, very short time material spends in molten condition and sluggish kinetics of mixing and diffusional process in Ti-Nb alloy results in heterogeneous microstructures depending on the local Nb content in the powder blend and the EBM® process conditions.
Evaluation of high spatial resolution imaging of magnetic stray fields for early damage detection
(2017)
The paper discusses the evaluation of elastic and plastic strain states in two low-carbon steels of the same steel group with high spatial resolution GMR (giant magneto resistance) sensors. The residual stress distributions of tungsten inert gas welded plates were determined by means of neutron diffraction as a reference. The normal component of local residual magnetic stray fields arise in the vicinity of the positions of maximum stress. The experiments performed on flat tensile specimen indicate that the boundaries of plastic deformations are a source of stray fields. The spatial variations of magnetic stray fields for both the weld and the tensile samples are in the order of the earths magnetic field.
This study examines the relationship between the magnetic mesostructure with the microstructure of low carbon steel tungsten inert gas welds. Optical microscopy revealed variation in the microstructure of the parent material, in the heat affected and fusion zones, correlating with distinctive changes in the local magnetic stray fields measured with high spatial resolution giant magneto resistance sensors. In the vicinity of the heat affected zone high residual stresses were found using neutron diffraction.
Notably, the gradients of von Mises stress and triaxial magnetic stray field modulus follow the same tendency transverse to the weld. In contrast, micro-X-ray fluorescence characterization indicated that local changes in element composition had no independent effect on magnetic stray fields.
The residual stress distribution of tungsten inert gas welded S235JRC+C plates was determined by means of neutron diffraction(ND). Large longitudinal residual stresses with maxima around 600 MPa were found. With these results as reference, the evaluation of residual stress with high spatial resolution GMR (giant magneto resistance) sensors was discussed. The experiments performed indicate a correlation between changes in residual stresses (ND) and the normal component of local residual magnetic stray fields (GMR). Spatial variations in the magnetic field strength perpendicular to the welds are in the order of the magnetic field of the earth.
This study reports on the stress relaxation potential of stress-relieving heat treatments for laser powder bed fused 316L. The residual stress is monitored non-destructively using neutron diffraction before and after the heat treatment. Moreover, the evolution of the microstructure is analysed using scanning electron microscopy. The results show, that a strong relaxation of the residual stress is obtained when applying a heat treatment temperature at 900°C. However, the loss of the cellular substructure needs to be considered when applying this heat treatment strategy.
The triaxial distribution of the residual stress in laser powder bed fused austenitic steel 316L was determined by X-ray and neutron diffraction. The residual stress analysis results were linked to the thermal history of the specimens, which were manufactured with varying inter-layer-times and scanning velocities. A clear link between the in-process temperature of the specimens and the residual stress was found, based on in-situ monitoring data.
Abstract While classically used to visualise the magnetic microstructure of functional materials (e.g., for magnetic applications), in this study, the Bitter technique was applied for the first time to visualise macroscopic deformation gradients in a polycrystalline low-carbon steel. Spherical indentation was chosen to produce a multiaxial elastic–plastic deformation state. After removing the residual imprint, the Bitter technique was applied, and macroscopic contrast differences were captured in optical microscopy. To verify this novel characterisation technique, characteristic “hemispherical” deformation zones evolving during indentation were identified using an analytical model from the field of contact mechanics. In addition, near-surface residual stresses were determined experimentally using synchrotron radiation diffraction. It is established that the magnetic domain distribution contrast provides deformation-related information: regions of different domain wall densities correspond to different “hemispherical” deformation zones (i.e., to hydrostatic core, plastic zone and elastic zone, respectively). Moreover, the transitions between these three zones correlate with characteristic features of the residual stress profiles (sign changes in the radial and local extrema in the hoop stress). These results indicate the potential of magnetic domain distribution imaging: visualising macroscopic deformation gradients in fine-grained ferromagnetic material with a significantly improved spatial resolution as compared to integral, mean value-based measurement methods.
Determination of short carbon fiber orientation in zirconium diboride ceramic matrix composites
(2024)
In fiber-reinforced components, the fiber alignment and orientation have paramount influence on the thermomechanical properties of the resulting composite, for both short and continuous fiber. Here we present the case of an ultra-refractory matrix intended for extreme environment applications, ZrB2, reinforced with 20 vol% and 50 vol% short carbon fibers. In both cases, fibers tend to align perpendicular to the uniaxial pressure applied during shaping and sintering of a pellet, although the fiber tilt across the pellet thickness is difficult to determine. Moreover, for high volume fractions of reinforcement, the spatial distribution of the fibers is heterogeneous and tends to have domains of preferential orientations. We compare the information on the fiber distribution as collected by scanning electron microscopy images, X-ray computed tomography and synchrotron X-ray refraction radiography (SXRR). The three techniques prove to be complementary. Importantly, we demonstrate that SXRR yields the most statistically significant information due to the largest field of view, yet with a sensitivity down to the nanometer, and that can be successfully applied also to heavy matrix materials, such as zirconium boride.
Talbot-Lau interferometry provides X-ray imaging techniques with significant enhancement of the radiographic contrast of weakly absorbing objects. The grating based technique allows separation of absorption, refraction and small angle scattering effects. The different efficiency of rectangular and triangular shaped phase gratings at varying detector distances is investigated. The interference patterns (Talbot carpets) are modeled for parallel monochromatic radiation and measured by synchrotron radiation. In comparison to rectangular shapes of phase gratings much higher visibility is obtained for triangular shapes which yield enhanced contrast of a glass capillary test specimen.
The performance of grating interferometers coming up now for Imaging interfaces within materials depends on the efficiency (visibility) of their main component, namely the phase grating. Therefore, experiments with monochromatic synchrotron radiation and corresponding simulations are carried out. The visibility of a Phase grating is optimized by different photon energies, varying detector to grating distances and continuous rotation of the phase grating about the grid lines. Such kind of rotation changes the projected grating shapes, and thereby the distribution profiles of phase shifts. This yields higher visibilities than derived from ideal rectangular shapes. By continuous grating rotation and variation of the propagation distance, we achieve 2D visibility maps. Such maps provide the visibility for a certain combination of grating orientation and detector position. Optimum visibilities occur at considerably smaller distances than in the standard setup.
Grating interferometric set-ups have been established in the last decade. They are promising candidates to obtain enhanced image contrast from weakly absorbing micro and nano structures. They are based on X-ray refraction and near-field diffraction using the Talbot effect.
At the expense of taking multiple images, Talbot-Lau grating interferometry allows separating the absorption, refraction, and scattering contributions by analysing the disturbances of a phase grating interference pattern. Contrary to other refraction enhanced methods, this technique can be applied using conventional X-ray tubes (divergent, polychromatic source). This makes it attractive to solve typical non-destructive testing problems.
We investigated the efficiency of phase gratings, i.e. the visibility (the amplitude of oscillations) upon variation of propagation distance and phase grating rotation around an axis parallel to the grid lines. This grating rotation changes the grating shape (i.e. the distributions of phase shifts). This can yield higher visibilities than derived from rectangular shapes.
Our study includes experimental results obtained from synchrotron radiation, as well as simulations for monochromatic radiation. The advantages of Talbot-Lau interferometry are demonstrated at the example of glass capillaries.
Grating interferometric set-ups have been established in the last decade. They are promising candidates to obtain enhanced image contrast from weakly absorbing micro and nano structures. They are based on X-ray refraction and near-field diffraction using the Talbot effect.
At the expense of taking multiple images, Talbot-Lau grating interferometry allows separating the absorption, refraction, and scattering contributions by analysing the disturbances of a phase grating interference pattern. Contrary to other refraction enhanced methods, this technique can be applied using conventional X-ray tubes (divergent, polychromatic source). This makes it attractive to solve typical non-destructive testing problems.
We investigated the efficiency of phase gratings, i.e. the visibility (the amplitude of oscillations) upon variation of propagation distance and phase grating rotation around an axis parallel to the grid lines. This grating rotation changes the grating shape (i.e. the distributions of phase shifts). This can yield higher visibilities than derived from rectangular shapes.
Our study includes experimental results obtained from synchrotron radiation, as well as simulations for monochromatic radiation. The advantages of Talbot-Lau interferometry are demonstrated at the example of glass capillaries.
Scanning Manufacturing Parameters Determining the Residual Stress State in LPBF IN718 Small Parts
(2021)
The influence of scan strategy on the residual stress (RS) state of an as-built IN718 alloy produced by means of laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) is investigated. Two scan vector rotations (90°-alternation and 67°-rotation), each produced following two different scan vector lengths (long and short), are used to manufacture four rectangular prisms. Neutron diffraction (ND) and laboratory X-ray diffraction (XRD) techniques are used to map the bulk and surface RS state, respectively. The distortion induced upon removal from the baseplate is measured via profilometry. XRD measurements show that the two long scan vector strategies lead to higher RS when compared with the equivalent short scan vector strategies. Also, the 67°-rotation strategies generate lower RS than their 90°-alternation counterparts. Due to the lack of reliable stress-free d0 references, the ND results are analyzed using von Mises stress. In general, ND results show significant RS spatial non-uniformity. A comparison between ND and distortion results indicates that the RS component parallel to the building direction (Z-axis) has a predominant role in the Z-displacement. The use of a stress balance scheme allows to discuss the d0 variability along the length of the specimens, as well as examine the absolute RS state.
For the first time, synchrotron X-ray refraction radiography (SXRR) has been paired with in-situ heat treatment to monitor microstructure and porosity evolution as a function of temperature. The investigated material was a laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) manufactured AlSi10Mg, where the initial eutectic Si network is known to disintegrate and spherodize into larger particles with increasing temperature. Such alloy is also prone to thermally induced porosity (TIP). We show that SXRR allows detecting the changes in the Si-phase morphology upon heating, while this is currently possible only using scanning electron microscopy. SXRR also allows observing the growth of pores, usually studied via X-ray computed tomography, but on much smaller fields-of-view. Our results show the great potential of in-situ SXRR as a tool to gain in-depth knowledge of the susceptibility of any material to thermally induced damage and/or microstructure evolution over statistically relevant volumes.
The relationship between residual stresses and microstructure associated with a laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) IN718 alloy has been investigated on specimens produced with three different scanning strategies (unidirectional Y-scan, 90° XY-scan, and 67° Rot-scan). Synchrotron X-ray energy-dispersive diffraction (EDXRD) combined with optical profilometry was used to study residual stress (RS) distribution and distortion upon removal of the specimens from the baseplate. The microstructural characterization of both the bulk and the nearsurface regions was conducted using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD). On the top surfaces of the specimens, the highest RS values are observed in the Y-scan specimen and the lowest in the Rot-scan specimen, while the tendency is inversed on the side lateral surfaces. A considerable amount of RS remains in the specimens after their removal from the baseplate, especially in the Y- and Z-direction (short specimen Dimension and building direction (BD), respectively). The distortion measured on the top surface following baseplate thinning and subsequent removal is mainly attributed to the amount of RS released in the build direction. Importantly, it is observed that the additive manufacturing microstructures challenge the use of classic theoretical models for the calculation of diffraction elastic constants (DEC) required for diffraction-based RS analysis. It is found that when the Reuß model is used for the calculation of RS for different crystal planes, as opposed to the conventionally used Kröner model, the results exhibit lower scatter. This is discussed in context of experimental measurements of DEC available in the literature for conventional and additively manufactured Ni-base alloys.
The electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) technique is used to investigate the dislocation structures formed after steady-state creep deformation of an Al-3.85%Mg alloy. This material is crept at two different stress levels, corresponding to the so-called power-law and power-law breakdown regimes. The results show that, regardless of the creep stress level, the strain tends to localize, leading to the formation of intragranular bands. The thickness of such bands is larger when the material is tested at loads corresponding to the power-law breakdown. This suggests enhanced diffusion by dislocation pipes.
In the present work, electron backscatter diffraction was used to determine the microscopic dislocation structures generated during creep (with tests interrupted at the steady state) in pure 99.8% aluminium. This material was investigated at two different stress levels, corresponding to the power-law and power-law breakdown regimes. The results show that the formation of subgrain cellular structures occurs independently of the crystallographic orientation. However, the density of these cellular structures strongly depends on the grain crystallographic orientation with respect to the tensile axis direction, with <111> grains exhibiting the highest densities at both stress levels. It is proposed that this behaviour is due to the influence of intergranular stresses, which is different in <111> and <001> grains.
The residual stress (RS) in laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) IN718 alloy samples produced using a 67°-rotation scan strategy is investigated via laboratory X-ray diffraction (XRD) and neutron diffraction (ND). The location dependence of the strain-free (d₀) lattice spacing in ND is evaluated using a grid array of coupons extracted from the far-edge of the investigated specimen. No compositional spatial variation is observed in the grid array. The calculated RS fields show considerable non-uniformity, significant stress gradients in the region from 0.6 to 2 mm below the surface, as well as subsurface maxima that cannot be accounted for via XRD. It is concluded that failure to determine such maxima would hamper a quantitative determination of RS fields by means of the stress balance method.
X-ray refraction is analogous to visible light deflection by matter; it occurs at boundaries between different media. The main difference between visible light and X-rays is that in the latter case deflection angles are very small, from a few seconds to a few minutes of arc (i.e., the refraction index n is near to 1). Importantly, deflection of X-rays is also sensitive to the orientation of the object boundaries. These features make X-ray refraction techniques extremely suitable to a) detect defects such as pores and microcracks and quantify their densities in bulk (not too heavy) materials, and b) evaluate porosity and particle properties such as orientation, size, and spatial distribution (by mapping). While X-ray refraction techniques cannot in general image single defects, they can detect objects with size above a few wavelengths of the radiation.
Such techniques, especially at the Synchrotron BESSY II, Berlin, Germany, can be used in-situ, i.e. when the specimen is subjected to temperatures or external loads.
The use of X-ray refraction analysis yields quantitative information, which can be directly input in kinetics, mechanical and damage models.
We hereby show the application of non-destructive X-ray refraction radiography (SXRR, 2D mapping also called topography) to problems in additive manufacturing:
1) Porosity analysis in PBF-LM-Ti64. Through the use of SXRR, we could not only map the (very sparse) porosity distribution between the layers and quantify it, but also classify, and thereby separate, the filled porosity (unmolten powder) from the keyhole and gas pores (Figure 1).
2) In-situ heat treatment of laser powder bed fusion PBF-LM-AlSi10Mg to monitor microstructure and porosity evolution as a function of temperature (Figure 2). By means of SXRR we indirectly observed the initial eutectic Si network break down into larger particles as a function of increasing temperature. We also could detect the thermally induced porosity (TIP). Such changes in the Si-phase morphology upon heating is currently only possible using scanning electron microscopy, but with a much smaller field-of-view. SXRR also allows observing the growth of some individual pores, usually studied via X-ray computed tomography, but again on much smaller fields-of-view.
Our results show the great potential of in-situ SXRR as a tool to gain in-depth knowledge of the defect distribution and the susceptibility of any material to thermally induced damage and/or microstructure evolution over statistically relevant volumes.
A range of heat treatments have been developed for wrought Inconel 718 to obtain desired properties. For additively manufactured Inconel 718, the recently developed standard ASTM F3301 provides guidance for heat treatment of powder bed fusion specimens. Although this standard is based on standards developed for wrought Inconel 718, it does not include direct aging. Since direct aging reduces the number of processing steps, it can result in a post processing cost reduction if the desired properties are obtained. In this study, we characterized the microstructure and tensile behavior of Inconel 718 specimens produced by a laser powder bed fusion process. The specimens were heat treated according to two different routines after stress relieving: a full heat Treatment versus a one-step direct aging process. Differences in the resulting texture and grain morphology were observed.
The ex-situ stress-strain behavior was broadly similar. However, a slight increase in yield strength was observed for the direct aged specimen. In order to understand this behavior, investigations with in-situ synchrotron Energy dispersive X-ray diffraction tensile testing revealed differences in the load partitioning among different Crystal directions. Importantly, the elastic anisotropy expressed by the magnitude of the diffraction elastic constants showed a dependency on the microstructures.
High energy X-ray synchrotron diffraction is used to investigate the elastic anisotropy of the nickel-based superalloy IN718 produced by laser powder bed fusion (PBF-LB). This material is characterized by a columnar grain morphology with some crystallographic texture. The material is subjected to elastic loading to determine the diffraction elastic constants (DECs). Furthermore, the single-crystal elastic constants (SCEC) are refined from these experiments using different micromechanical models. The results show that each micromechanical model predicts a specific set of SCEC that well describes the elastic anisotropy of PBF-LB/IN718.
The manufacturability of metallic alloys using laser-based additive manufacturing methods such as laser powder bed fusion has substantially improved within the last decade. However, local melting and solidification cause hierarchically structured and crystallographically textured microstructures possessing large residual stress. Such microstructures are not only the origin of mechanical anisotropy but also pose metrological challenges for the diffraction-based residual stress determination. Here we demonstrate the influence of the build orientation and the texture on the microstructure and consequently the mechanical anisotropy of as-built Inconel 718. For this purpose, we manufactured specimens with [001]/[011]-, [001]- and [011]/[111]-type textures along their loading direction. In addition to changes in the Young’s moduli, the differences in the crystallographic textures result in variations of the yield and ultimate tensile strengths. With this in mind, we studied the anisotropy on the micromechanical scale by subjecting the specimens to tensile loads along the different texture directions during in situ neutron diffraction experiments. In this context, the response of multiple lattice planes up to a tensile strain of 10% displayed differences in the load partitioning and the residual strain accumulation for the specimen with [011]/[111]-type texture. However, the relative behavior of the specimens possessing an [001]/[011]- and [001]-type texture remained qualitatively similar. The consequences on the metrology of residual stress determination methods are discussed.
Laser-based additive manufacturing methods allow the production of complex metal structures within a single manufacturing step. However, the localized heat input and the layer-wise manufacturing manner give rise to large thermal gradients. Therefore, large internal stress (IS) during the process (and consequently residual stress (RS) at the end of production) is generated within the parts. This IS or RS can either lead to distortion or cracking during fabrication or in-service part failure, respectively. With this in view, the knowledge on the magnitude and spatial distribution of RS is important to develop strategies for its mitigation. Specifically, diffraction-based methods allow the spatial resolved determination of RS in a non-destructive fashion. In this review, common diffraction-based methods to determine RS in laser-based additive manufactured parts are presented. In fact, the unique microstructures and textures associated to laser-based additive manufacturing processes pose metrological challenges. Based on the literature review, it is recommended to (a) use mechanically relaxed samples measured in several orientations as appropriate strain-free lattice spacing, instead of powder, (b) consider that an appropriate grain-interaction model to calculate diffraction-elastic constants is both material- and texture-dependent and may differ from the conventionally manufactured variant. Further metrological challenges are critically reviewed and future demands in this research field are discussed.
Although layer-based additive manufacturing methods such as laser powder bed fusion (PBF-LB) offer an immense geometrical freedom in design, they are typically subject to a build-up of internal stress (i.e. thermal stress) during manufacturing. As a consequence, significant residual stress (RS) is retained in the final part as a footprint of these internal stresses. Furthermore, localized melting and solidification inherently induce columnar-type grain growth accompanied by crystallographic texture. Although diffraction-based methods are commonly used to determine the RS distribution in PBF-LB parts, such features pose metrological challenges in their application. In theory, preferred grain orientation invalidates the hypothesis of isotropic material behavior underlying the common methods to determine RS. In this work, more refined methods are employed to determine RS in PBF-LB/M/IN718 prisms, based on crystallographic texture data. In fact, the employment of direction-dependent elastic constants (i.e. stress factors) for the calculation of RS results in insignificant differences from conventional approaches based on the hypothesis of isotropic mechanical properties. It can be concluded that this result is directly linked to the fact that the {311} lattice planes typically used for RS analysis in nickel-based alloys have high multiplicity and less strong texture intensities compared with other lattice planes. It is also found that the length of the laser scan vectors determines the surface RS distribution in prisms prior to their removal from the baseplate. On removal from the baseplate the surface RS considerably relaxes and/or redistributes; a combination of the geometry and the scanning strategy dictates the sub-surface RS distribution.
The material and damage behaviour of additively manufactured polyamide 12 under cyclic loading was characterized by cyclic tests and microstructure analysis by using microscopy, X-ray refraction, and computed tomography. The results were used to determine parameters for the viscoplastic material model by Chaboche and a damage model by Gurson-Tvergaard-Needleman. The temperature was monitored during the experiments and the self-heating effect was observed. By including this effect, a higher accuracy could be achieved with the results of mechanical experiments.
In order to characterise the material and damage behaviour of additively manufactured polyamide 12 (PA12) under quasi-static load and to implement it in a numerical model, experiments under quasi-static load as well as microstructural investigations were carried out. Selective laser sintering (SLS) was used as the manufacturing process. For the classification of the material behaviour, quasi-static cyclic tests with holding times as well as tensile tests were performed. X-ray refraction and computed tomography (CT) were used to investigate the damage behaviour. The Chaboche model, which has already been applied for metallic materials under thermomechanical loading, served as the basis for the selection of the numerical material model. The same procedure was used for the selection of the damage model, where the Gurson–Tvergaard–Needleman (GTN) model was chosen, which was already used for porous metallic materials. The Chaboche model shows very good agreement with experimental results. Furthermore, the coupling with the GTN model allows a very good modelling of the damage behaviour. Finally, it could be shown that the selected models are suitable to simulate the material and damage behaviour of 3D printed PA12.
Influence of a 265 °C heat treatment on the residual stress state of a PBF-LB/M AlSi10Mg alloy
(2022)
Laser Powder Bed Fusion (PBF-LB/M) additive manufacturing (AM) induces
high magnitude residual stress (RS) in structures due to the extremely heterogeneous cooling and heating rates. As the RS can be deleterious to the fatigue resistance of engineering components, great efforts are focused on understanding their generation and evolution after post-process heat treatments. In this study, one of the few of its kind, the RS relaxation induced in an as-built PBF-LB/M AlSi10Mg material by a low-temperature heat treatment (265 °C for 1 h) is studied by means of X-ray and neutron diffraction. Since the specimens are manufactured using a baseplate heated up to 200 °C, low RS are found in the as-built condition. After heat treatment a redistribution of the RS is observed, while their magnitude remains constant. It is proposed that the redistribution is induced by a repartition of stresses between the a-aluminium matrix and the silicon phase, as the morphology of the silicon phase is affected by the heat treatment. A considerable scatter is observed in the neutron diffraction RS profiles, which is principally correlated to the presence (or absence) of pockets of porosity developed at the borders of the chessboard pattern.
AbstractIn this study, we compare the residual stress state in a laser powder bed fusion (PBF‐LB/M) AlSi10Mg alloy in the as‐built (AB) condition with that after two different heat treatments (265 °C for 1 h, HT1; and 300 °C for 2 h, HT2). The bulk residual stress (RS) is determined using synchrotron X‐ray diffraction (SXRD), and near‐surface profiles are determined using laboratory energy‐dispersive X‐ray diffraction (EDXRD). The EDXRD results do not reveal any notable difference between the conditions at a depth of 350 μm, suggesting that the machining process yields a comparable residual stress state in the near‐surface regions. On the other hand, the SXRD results show that HT1 is more effective in relieving the bulk RS. It is observed that HT1 reduces the RS state in both the aluminium matrix and the silicon network. In addtion, HT2 does not have a significant impact on relaxing the RS as‐built state of the matrix, although it does induce a reduction in the RS magnitudes of the Si phase. It is concluded that the heat treatment stress relieving is effective as long as the Si‐network is not disaggregated.
Electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) images of extruded pure aluminum were statistically analyzed to investigate creep-induced subgrain structures after applying two different levels of creep stress, corresponding to the power law (PL) and power-law breakdown (PLB) regimes. Kernel average misorientation analysis of EBSD measurements revealed 2D morphologies, which were subdivided by a multi-step segmentation procedure into subgranular arrangements. Various descriptors were employed to characterize the “subgrains” quantitatively, including their size, shape, spatial arrangement, and crystallographic orientation. In particular, the analysis of the orientations of subgrains was conducted by neglecting rotations around the loading axis. This approach facilitated the individual investigation of the {001} and {111} subgrain families with respect to the loading axis for two investigated stress levels plus a reference specimen. For the PL regime, the statistical analysis of subgrain descriptors computed from segmented image data revealed a similar degree of strain accumulation for {111} and {001} subgrains. In contrast, for the PLB regime, the analyzed descriptors indicate that {111} subgrains tend to accumulate significantly more strain than {001} ones. These observations suggest that the mechanisms leading to PLB may be associated with strain localization dependent on intergranular stress, hindering the recovery process within {111} grains.
The stress-induced tetragonal to monoclinic (t-m) zirconia phase transformation can provide a certain degree of plasticity to Ceria-stabilized (Ce-TZP) zirconia-based composites. Characterizing and monitoring this phase transition on a millimeter-size range, within the bulk and in-situ remains a challenge. In this work, the mechanical behavior of Ce-TZP based composite was studied in tension, combining microscopy and synchrotron Xray refraction techniques. In contrast with microscopy methods, which only provide surface information, X-ray refraction radiography (SXRR) allowed the visualization of all the transformation bands, over the entire length and thickness of tested specimens, opening up new avenues for in-situ stress-induced t-m transformation studies.
Water migration in one-side heated concrete: 4D in-situ CT monitoring of the moisture-clog-effect
(2019)
Explosive spalling due to fire exposure in concrete structures can lead severe damage and, in the worst case, to premature component failure. For this reason, an in situ investigation of water Migration in concrete due to surface heating was undertaken.
During these experiments, a miniaturized concrete specimen within a confining and insulating double-hull was subjected to surface heating during simultaneous X-ray computed tomography (CT) scanning. Through the use of subtraction-based Image analysis techniques, it was possible to observe and quantify not only drying within areas of the concrete matrix close to the heated surface, but also the migration of moisture to both pore and matrix regions deeper within the specimen. It was also discovered that the correction of CT images for specimen deformation using DVC and variable detector performance using calibrated image filters significantly improved the quality of the results. This clearly demonstrates the potential of X-ray CT for evaluation of other rapid-density-change phenomena in concrete and other building materials.
Contour scanning and process gas type are process parameters typically considered achieving second order effects compared to first order factors such as laser power and scanning speed. The present work highlights that contour scanning is crucial to ensure geometrical accuracy and thereby the high performance under uniaxial compression of complex Alloy 718 lattice structures. Studies of X-ray computed tomography visualizations of as-built and compression-strained structures reveal the continuous and smooth bending and compression of the walls, and the earlier onset of internal contact appearance in the denser lattices printed with contour. In contrast, the effect of addition of He to the Ar process gas appears to have limited influence on the mechanical response of the lattices and their microstructure as characterized by electron backscattered diffraction. However, the addition of He proved to significantly enhance the cooling rate and to reduce the amount of the generated spatters as evidenced by in situ monitoring of the process emissions, which is very promising for the process stability and powder reusability during laser powder bed fusion.
The influence of the process gas, laser scan speed, and sample thickness on the build-up of residual stresses and porosity in Ti-6Al-4V produced by laser powder bed fusion was studied. Pure argon and helium, as well as a mixture of those (30% helium), were employed to establish process atmospheres with a low residual Oxygen content of 100 ppm O2. The results highlight that the subsurface residual stresses measured by X-ray diffraction were significantly lower in the thin samples (220 MPa) than in the cuboid samples (645 MPa). This difference was attributed to the shorter laser vector length, resulting in heat accumulation and thus in-situ stress relief. The addition of helium to the process gas did not introduce additional subsurface residual stresses in the simple geometries, even for the increased scanning speed. Finally, larger deflection was found in the cantilever built under helium (after removal from the baseplate), than in those produced under argon and an argon-helium mixture. This result demonstrates that complex designs involving large scanned areas could be subjected to higher residual stress when manufactured under helium due to the gas’s high thermal conductivity, heat capacity, and thermal diffusivity.
The detection of internal irregularities is crucial for quality assessment in metal-based additive manufacturing (AM) technologies such as laser powder bed fusion (L-PBF). The utilization of in-process thermography as an in situ monitoring tool in combination with post-process X-ray micro computed tomography (XCT) as a reference technique has shown great potential for this aim. Due to the small irregularity dimensions, a precise registration of the datasets is necessary as a
requirement for correlation. In this study, the registration of thermography and XCT reference datasets of a cylindric specimen containing keyhole pores is carried out for the development of a porosity prediction model. The considered datasets show variations in shape, data type and dimensionality, especially due to shrinkage and material elevation effects present in the manufactured part. Since the resulting deformations are challenging for registration, a novel preprocessing methodology is introduced that involves an adaptive volume adjustment algorithm which is based on the porosity distribution in the specimen. Thus, the implementation of a simple three-dimensional image-to-image registration is enabled. The results demonstrate the influence of the part deformation on the resulting porosity location and the importance of registration in terms of irregularity prediction.
Several cylindrical specimens and dental implants, presenting diagonal lattice structures with different cell sizes (600, 900 and 1200 µm) were additively manufactured by selective laser melting process. Then they were implanted for two months in a sheep. After removal, they were studied by Archimedes’ method as well as X-ray computed tomography in order to assess the penetration of bone into the lattice. We observed that the additive manufactured parts were geometrically conform to the theoretical specifications. However, several particles were left adhering to the surface of the lattice, thereby partly or entirely obstructing the cells. Nevertheless, bone penetration was clearly visible. We conclude that the 900 µm lattice cell size is more favourable to bone penetration than the 1200 µm lattice cell size, as the bone penetration is 84 % for 900 µm against 54 % for 1200 µm cell structures. The lower bone penetration value for the 1200 µm lattice cell could possibly be attributed to the short residence time in the sheep. Our results lead to the conclusion that lattice implants additively manufactured by selective laser melting enable better bone integration.
The in situ analysis of the damage evolution in a metal Matrix composite (MMC) using synchrotron X-ray refraction radiography (SXRR) is presented. The investigated material is an Al alloy (6061)/10 vol% Al2O3 MMC after T6 heat treatment.
In an interrupted tensile test the gauge section of dog bone-shaped specimens is imaged in different states of tensile loading. On the basis of the SXRR images, the relative change of the specific surface (proportional to the amount of damage) in the course of tensile loading was analyzed. It could be shown that the damage can be detected by SXRR already at a stage of tensile loading, in which no Observation of damage is possible with radiographic absorption-based imaging methods.
Moreover, the quantitative analysis of the SXRR images reveals that the amount of damage increases homogeneously by an average of 25% with respect to the Initial state. To corroborate the experimental findings, the damage distribution was imaged in 3D after the final tensile loading by synchrotron X-ray refraction computed tomography (SXRCT) and absorption-based synchrotron X-ray computed tomography (SXCT). It could be evidenced that defects and damages cause pronounced indications in the SXRCT images.
Laser based powder bed fusion additive manufacturing offers the flexibility to incorporate standard and userdefined scan strategies in a layer or in between the layers for the customized fabrication of metallic components. In the present study, four different scan strategies and their impact on the development of microstructure, texture, and residual stresses in laser powder bed fusion additive manufacturing of a nickel-based superalloy Inconel 718 was investigated. Light microscopy, scanning electron microscopy combined with electron backscatter diffraction, and neutron diffraction were used as the characterization tools. Strong textures with epitaxially grown columnar grains were observed along the build direction for the two individual scan strategies. Patterns depicting the respective scan strategies were visible in the build plane, which dictated the microstructure development in the other planes. An alternating strategy combining the individual strategies in the successive layers and a 67◦ rotational strategy weakened the texture by forming finer microstructural features. Von Mises equivalent stress plots revealed lower stress values and gradients, which translates as lower distortions for the alternating and rotational strategies. Overall results confirmed the scope for manipulating the microstructure, texture, and residual stresses during laser powder bed fusion additive manufacturing by effectively controlling the scan strategies.
In the present study, samples fabricated by varying the deposition hatch length during selective laser melting of nickel based superalloy Inconel 718 were investigated. Microstructure and texture of these samples was characterized using scanning electron microscopy, combined with electron back-scattered diffraction, and residual stress assessment, using neutron diffraction method. Textured columnar grains oriented along the sample building direction were observed in the shorter hatch length processed sample. A ten-fold increase in the hatch length reduced the texture intensity by a factor of two attributed to the formation of finer grains in the longer hatch length sample. Larger gradients of transverse residual stress in the longer hatch length sample were also observed. Along the build direction, compressive stresses in the shorter hatch length and negligible stresses for the longer hatch length specimen were observed. Changes to the temperature gradient (G) in response to the hatch length variation, influenced the G to growth rate (R) ratio and the product G × R, in agreement with the microstructures and textures formed. For the residual stress development, geometry of the part also played an important role. In summary, tailored isotropy could be induced in Inconel 718 by a careful selection of parameters during selective laser melting.
Microstructure characterisation of advanced materials via 2D and 3D X-ray refraction techniques
(2018)
3D imaging techniques have an enormous potential to understand the microstructure, its evolution, and its link to mechanical, thermal, and transport properties. In this conference paper we report the use of a powerful, yet not so wide-spread, set of X-ray techniques based on refraction effects. X-ray refraction allows determining internal specific surface (surface per unit volume) in a non-destructive fashion, position and orientation sensitive, and with a nanometric detectability. We demonstrate showcases of ceramics and composite materials, where microstructural parameters could be achieved in a way unrivalled even by high-resolution techniques such as electron microscopy or computed tomography. We present in situ analysis of the damage evolution in an Al/Al2O3 metal matrix composite during tensile load and the identification of void formation (different kinds of defects, particularly unsintered powder hidden in pores, and small inhomogeneity’s like cracks) in Ti64 parts produced by selective laser melting using synchrotron X-ray refraction radiography and tomography.
In order to investigate their microcracking behaviour, the microstructures of several β-eucryptite ceramics, obtained from glass precursor and cerammed to yield different grain sizes and microcrack densities, were characterized by laboratory and synchrotron x-ray refraction and tomography. Results were compared with those obtained from scanning electron microscopy (SEM). In SEM images, the characterized materials appeared fully dense but computed tomography showed the presence of pore clusters. Uniaxial tensile testing was performed on specimens while strain maps were recorded and analyzed by Digital Image Correlation (DIC). X-ray refraction techniques were applied on specimens before and after tensile testing to measure the amount of the internal specific surface (i.e., area per unit volume). X-ray refraction revealed that (a) the small grain size (SGS) material contained a large specific surface, originating from the grain boundaries and the interfaces of TiO2 precipitates; (b) the medium (MGS) and large grain size (LGS) materials possessed higher amounts of specific surface compared to SGS material due to microcracks, which decreased after tensile loading; (c) the precursor glass had negligible internal surface. The unexpected decrease in the internal surface of MGS and LGS after tensile testing is explained by the presence of compressive regions in the DIC strain maps and further by theoretical arguments. It is suggested that while some microcracks merge via propagation, more close mechanically, thereby explaining the observed X-ray refraction results. The mechanisms proposed would allow the development of a strain hardening route in ceramics.
The stress–strain behavior of ceramics, such as aluminum titanate, has certain features that are unusual for brittle materials—in particular, a substantial nonlinearity under uniaxial tension, and load–unload hysteresis caused by the sharp increase of the incremental stiffness at the beginning of unloading. These features are observed experimentally and are attributed to microcracking. Here we compare different degrees of stress–strain nonlinearity of aluminum titanate materials and quantitatively model them. We use advanced mechanical testing to observe the mechanical response at room and high temperature; electron microscopy, and X-ray refraction radiography to observe the microstructural changes. Experiments show that two types of microcracks can be distinguished: (i) microcracks induced by cooling from the sintering temperature (due to heterogeneity and anisotropy of thermal expansion), with typical sizes of the order of grain size, and (ii) much larger microcracks generated by the mechanical loading. The two microcrack types produce different effects on the stress–strain curves. Such microcracks and the features of the stress–strain behavior depend on the density of the cooling-induced microcracks and on the distribution of grain sizes. They are modeled analytically and numerically.
Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing (WAAM) features high deposition rates and, thus, allows production of large components that are relevant for aerospace applications. However, a lot of aerospace parts are currently produced by forging or machining alone to ensure fast production and to obtain good mechanical properties; the use of these conventional process routes causes high tooling and material costs. A hybrid approach (a combination of forging and WAAM) allows making production more efficient. In this fashion, further structural or functional features can be built in any direction without using additional tools for every part. By using a combination of forging basic geometries with one tool set and adding the functional features by means of WAAM, the tool costs and material waste can be reduced compared to either completely forged or machined parts. One of the factors influencing the structural integrity of additively manufactured parts are (high) residual stresses, generated during the build process. In this study, the triaxial residual stress profiles in a hybrid WAAM part are reported, as determined by neutron diffraction. The analysis is complemented by microstructural investigations, showing a gradient of microstructure (shape and size of grains) along the part height. The highest residual stresses were found in the transition Zone (between WAAM and forged part). The total stress range showed to be lower than expected for WAAM components. This could be explained by the thermal history of the component.
This paper focuses on the experimental evaluation of one of the key microstructural Parameters of a short-fiber reinforced composite – the orientation distribution of fibers. It is shown that computed tomography (CT) produces results suitable for reconstruction of the orientation distribution function. This function is used for calculation of the effective elastic properties of polymer-fiber reinforced concrete. Explicit formulas are derived for overall elastic moduli accounting for orientation distribution in the frameworks of the noninteraction approximation, the Mori–Tanaka–Benveniste scheme, and the Maxwell scheme.
The approach illustrated can be applied to any kind of composite material.
In the present study, in-situ observation of Hot Isostatic Pressure (HIP) procedure of laser powder bed fusion manufactured Ti-6Al-4V parts was performed to quantitatively estimate the densifcation rate of the material and the infuence of the defect initial size and shape on such rate. The observations were performed in-situ using the Ultrafast Tomography Paris-Edinburgh Cell and the combination of fast phase-contrast synchrotron X-ray tomography and energy dispersive difraction. With this strategy, we could quantify how the efectiveness of HIP depends on the characteristics of a defect. Smaller defects showed a higher densifcation rate, while the defect shape did not have signifcant efect on such rate.
The availability of high-performance Al alloys in AM is limited due to difficulties in printability, requiring both the development of synergetic material and AM process to mitigate problems such as solidification cracking during laser powder bed fusion (LPBF). The goal of this work was to investigate the failure mechanism in a LPBF 7017 Aluminium alloy + 3 wt% Zr + 0.5 wt% TiC. The processing leads to different categories of Zr-rich inclusions, precipitates and defects.
The micromechanical behavior of an annealed Ti-6Al-4V material produced by Laser Powder Bed Fusion was characterized by means of in-situ synchrotron X-ray diffraction during a tensile test. The lattice strain evolution was obtained parallel and transversal to the loading direction. The elastic constants were determined and compared with the conventionally manufactured alloy. In the plastic regime, a lower plastic anisotropy exhibited by the lattice planes was observed along the load axis (parallel to the building direction) than in the transverse direction.
Also, the load transfer from α to β phase was observed, increasing global ductility of the material. The material seems to accumulate a significant amount of intergranular strain in the transverse direction.
The influence of the support structure on residual stress and distortion in SLM Inconel 718 parts
(2018)
The effect of support structure and of removal from the base plate on the residual stress state in selective laser melted IN718 parts was studied by means of synchrotron X-ray diffraction. The residual stresses in subsurface region of two elongated prisms in as-built condition and after removal from the base plate were determined. One sample was directly built on a base plate and another one on a support structure. Also, the distortion on the top surface due to stress release was measured by contact profilometry. High tensile residual stress values were found, with pronounced stress gradient along the hatching direction. In the sample on support, stress redistribution took place after removal from the base plate, as opposed to simple stress relaxation for the sample without support. The sample on support structure showed larger distortion compared to sample without support. We conclude that the use of a support decreases stress values but stress-relieving heat treatments are still needed.
Ti-6Al-4V bridges were additively fabricated by selective laser melting (SLM) under different scanning speed conditions, to compare the effect of process energy density on the residual stress state. Subsurface lattice strain characterization was conducted by means of synchrotron diffraction in energy dispersive mode. High tensile strain gradients were found at the frontal surface for samples in an as-built condition. The geometry of the samples promotes increasing strains towards the pillar of the bridges. We observed that the higher the laser energy density during fabrication, the lower the lattice strains. A relief of lattice strains takes place after heat treatment.
The paper is motivated by some inconsistencies and contradictions present in the literature on the calculation of the so-called diffraction elastic constants. In an attempt at unifying the views that the two communities of Materials Science and Mechanics of Materials have on the subject, we revisit and define the terminology used in the field. We also clarify the limitations of the commonly used approaches and Show that a unified methodology is also applicable to textured materials with a nearly arbitrary grain shape. We finally compare the predictions based on this methodology with experimental data obtained by in situ synchrotron radiation diffraction on additively manufactured Ti-6Al4V alloy. We show that (a) the transverse isotropy of the material yields good agreement between the best-fit isotropy approximation (equivalent to the classic Kröner’s model) and the experimental data and (b) the use of a general framework allows the calculation of all components of the tensor of diffraction elastic constants, which are not easily measurable by diffraction methods. This allows us to extend the
current state-of-the-art with a predictive tool.
The overview of the activity of Federal Institute for Material Research and Testing (BAM, Belin, Germany) in the field of additively manufacturing material characterization will be presented. The research of our group is focused on the 3D imaging of AM materials by means of X-ray Computed Tomography at the lab and at synchrotron, and the residual stress characterization by diffraction (nondestructive technique). Also, two successful research project in collaboration with CAM2, Sweden are presented.
In the present study, Ti-6Al-4V bridge-like specimens were manufactured additively by selective laser melting (SLM) under different laser scanning speed conditions in order to compare the effect of process energy density on the residual stress state. Subsurface residual stress analysis was conducted by means of synchrotron diffraction in energy dispersive mode for three conditions: as-built on base plate, released from base plate, and after heat treatment on the base plate. The quantitative residual stress characterization shows a correlation with the qualitative bridge curvature method. Computed tomography (CT) was carried out to ensure that no stress relief took place owing to the presence of porosity. CT allows obtaining spatial and size pores distribution which helps in optimization of the SLM process.
High tensile residual stresses were found at the lateral surface for samples in the as-built conditions. We observed that higher laser energy density during fabrication leads to lower residual stresses. Samples in released condition showed redistribution of the stresses due to distortion. A method for the calculation of the stress associated to distortion of the parts after cutting from base plate is proposed. The distortion measurements were used as input for FEM simulations.
Synchrotron X-ray diffraction is a powerful non-destructive technique for the analysis of the material stress-state. High cooling rates and heterogeneous temperature distributions during additive manufacturing lead to high residual stresses. These high residual stresses play a crucial role in the ability to achieve complex geometries with accuracy since they can promote distortion of parts during manufacturing. Furthermore, residual stresses are critical for the mechanical performance of parts in terms of durability and safety.
In the present study, Ti-6Al-4V bridge-like specimens were manufactured additively by selective laser melting (SLM) under different laser scanning speed conditions in order to compare the effect of process energy density on the residual stress state. Subsurface residual stress analysis was conducted by means of synchrotron X-ray diffraction in energy dispersive mode for three conditions: as-built on base plate, released from base plate, and after heat treatment on the base plate. The quantitative residual stress characterization shows a correlation with the qualitative bridge curvature method. Computed tomography (CT) was carried out to ensure that no stress relief took place owing to the presence of porosity. CT allows obtaining spatial and size pores distribution which helps in optimization of the SLM process.
High tensile residual stresses were found at the lateral surface for samples in the as-built conditions. We observed that higher laser energy density during fabrication leads to lower residual stresses. Samples in released condition showed redistribution of the stresses due to distortion.
Manufacturing defects, high residual stress (RS), and microstructures affect the structural integrity of laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) Ti-6Al-4V. In this study, the individual effect of these factors on fatigue performance at elevated temperature (300 °C) was evaluated. Material in as-built condition and subjected to post-processing, including two heat treatments and hot isostatic pressing, was investigated. It was found that in the absence of tensile RS, the fatigue life at elevated temperature is primary controlled by the defects; and densification has a much stronger effect than the considered heat treatments on the improvement of the mechanical performance.
Subsurface residual stresses (RS) were investigated in Ti-6Al-4V cuboid samples by means of X-ray synchrotron diffraction. The samples were manufactured by laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) applying different processing parameters, not commonly considered in open literature, in order to assess their influence on RS state. While investigating the effect of process parameters used for the calculation of volumetric energy density (such as laser velocity, laser power and hatch distance), we observed that an increase of energy density led to a decrease of RS, although not to the same extent for every parameter variation. Additionally, the effect of support structure, sample roughness and LPBF machine effects potentially coming from Ar flow were studied. We observed no influence of support structure on subsurface RS while the orientation with respect to Ar flow showed to have an impact on RS.We conclude recommending monitoring such parameters to improve part reliability and reproducibility.
While the volumetric energy density is commonly used to qualify a process parameter set, and to quantify its influence on the microstructure and performance of additively manufactured (AM) materials and components, it has been already shown that this description is by no means exhaustive. In this work, new aspects of the optimization of the selective laser melting process are investigated for AM Ti-6Al-4V. We focus on the amount of near-surface residual stress (RS), often blamed for the failure of components, and on the porosity characteristics (amount and spatial distribution). First, using synchrotron x-ray diffraction we show that higher RS in the subsurface region is generated if a lower energy density is used. Second, we show that laser de-focusing and sample positioning inside the build chamber also play an eminent role, and we quantify this influence. In parallel, using X-ray Computed Tomography, we observe that porosity is mainly concentrated in the contour region, except in the case where the laser speed is small. The low values of porosity (less than 1%) do not influence RS.
Connecting Diffraction-Based Strain with Macroscopic Stresses in Laser Powder Bed Fused Ti-6Al-4V
(2020)
The laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) production process often results in large residual stress (RS) in the parts. Nondestructive techniques to determine RS are badly needed. However, a reliable quantification of macro-RS (i.e., stress at the component level) by means of diffraction-based techniques is still a great challenge, because the link between diffraction-based strain and macro-RS is not trivial. In this study, we experimentally determine (by means of in-situ synchrotron radiation diffraction) this link for LPBF Ti-6Al-4V. We compare our results with commonly used models to determine the so-called diffraction elastic constants (DECs). We show that LPBF materials possess different DECs than wrought alloys, simply because their microstructural and mechanical properties are different. We also show that the existing models can be used to calculate DECs only if high accuracy of the RS values is not required. If the peculiarities of the microstructure have to be taken into account (as is the case of additively manufactured materials), a radically new approach is desirable.
This study addressed a 7017 Al-alloy tailored for powder bed fusion – laser beam (PBF-LB) process. The alloy was prepared by mixing 3 wt% Zr and 0.5 wt% TiC powder to standard pre-alloyed 7017 grade aluminium powder. This made printing of the alloys possible avoiding solidification cracking in the bulk and achieving high relative density (99.8 %). Such advanced alloys have significantly higher Young’s modulus (>80 GPa) than conventional Al-alloys (70–75 GPa), thus making them attractive for applications requiring high stiffness. The resulting microstructure in as-printed condition was rich in particles originating from admixed powders and primary precipitates/inclusions originating from the PBF-LB process. After performing a T6-like heat treatment designed for the PBF-LB process, the microstructure changed: Zr-nanoparticles and Fe- or Mg/Zn- containing precipitates formed thus providing 75 % increase in yield strength (from 254 MPa to 444 MPa) at the cost of decreasing ductility (∼20 % to ∼9 %). In-situ tensile testing combined with SXCT, and ex-situ tensile testing combined with fracture analysis confirmed that the fracture initiation in both conditions is highly dependent on defects originated during printing. However, cracks are deflected from decohesion around Zr-containing inclusions/precipitates embedded in the Al-matrix. This deflection is seen to improve the ductility of the material.
The hard X-ray beamline BAMline at BESSY II (Berlin, Germany) has now been in service for 20 years. Several improvements have been implemented in this time, and this review provides an overview of the imaging methods available at the BAMline. Besides classic full-field synchrotron X-ray computed tomography (SXCT), also absorption edge CT, synchrotron X-ray refraction radiography (SXRR), and synchrotron X-ray refraction tomography (SXRCT) are used for imaging. Moreover, virtually any of those techniques are currently coupled in situ or operando with ancillary equipment such as load rigs, furnaces, or potentiostats. Each of the available techniques is explained and both the current and the potential usage are described with corresponding examples. The potential use is manifold, the examples cover organic materials, composite materials, energy-related materials, biological samples, and materials related to additive manufacturing. The article includes published examples as well as some unpublished applications.
Degradation of thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) in gas‐turbine engines due to calcium–magnesium–aluminosilicate (CMAS) glassy deposits from various sources has been a persistent issue since many years. In this study, state of the art electron microscopy was correlated with X‐ray refraction techniques to elucidate the intrusion of CMAS into the porous structure of atmospheric plasma sprayed (APS) TBCs and the formation and growth of cracks under thermal cycling in a burner rig. Results indicate that the sparse nature of the infiltration as well as kinetics in the burner rig are majorly influenced by the wetting behavior of the CMAS. Despite the obvious attack of CMAS on grain boundaries, the interaction of yttria‐stabilized zirconia (YSZ) with intruded CMAS has no immediate impact on structure and density of internal surfaces. At a later stage the formation of horizontal cracks is observed in a wider zone of the TBC layer.
The mixture of ammonium nitrate (AN) prills and fuel oil (FO), usually called ANFO, is extensively used in the mining industry as a bulk industrial explosive. One of the major performance predictors of ANFO mixtures is the fuel oil retention, which is itself governed by the porosity of the AN prills. Standardised tests routinely used to assess oil retention face several important limitations; the first being the difficulty to cover the wide range of porosity contents and morphologies from different types of ammonium nitrate prills; the second being the inability to evaluate the closed porosity, which is an important factor regarding the sensitivity of the explosive to detonation. In this study, we present how X-ray computed tomography (XCT), and the associated advanced data processing workflow, can be used to fully characterise the structure and morphology of AN prills. We show that structural parameters such as volume fraction of the different phases and morphological parameters such as specific surface area and shape factor can be reliably extracted from the XCT data, and that there is a good agreement with the measured oil retention values. XCT can therefore be employed to non-destructively and accurately evaluate and characterise porosity in ammonium nitrate prills.
The mixture of ammonium nitrate (AN) prills and fuel oil (FO), usually referred to as ANFO, is extensively used in the mining industry as a bulk explosive. One of the major performance predictors of ANFO mixtures is the fuel oil retention, which is itself governed by the complex pore structure of the AN prills. In this study, we present how X-ray computed tomography (XCT), and the associated advanced data processing workflow, can be used to fully characterise the structure and morphology of AN prills. We show that structural parameters such as volume fraction of the different phases and morphological parameters such as specific surface area and shape factor can be reliably extracted from the XCT data, and that there is a good agreement with the measured oil retention values. Importantly, oil retention measurements (qualifying the efficiency of ANFO as explosives) correlate well with the specific surface area determined by XCT. XCT can therefore be employed non-destructively; it can accurately evaluate and characterise porosity in ammonium nitrate prills, and even predict their efficiency.
Ammonium nitrate (AN) prills are commonly used as an ingredient in industrial explosives and in fertilisers. Conventional techniques (such as BET or mercury intrusion porosimetry) can measure the open porosity and specific surface area of AN prill, but the closed porosity is not obtainable. This work was focused on evaluating X-ray computed tomography (XCT) as a non-destructive technique for the assessment of porosity in AN prills. An advanced data processing workflow was developed so that the segmentation and quantification of the CT data could be performed on the entire 3D volume, yet allowing the measurements (e.g.; volume, area, shape factor…) to be extracted for each individual phase (prill, open porosity, closed porosity) of each individual prill, in order to obtain statistically relevant data. Clear morphological and structural differences were seen and quantified between fertiliser and explosive products. Overall, CT can provide a very wide range of parameters that are not accessible to other techniques, destructive or non-destructive, and thus offers new insights and complementary information.
Shock tube systems are non-electric explosive fuses employed in blasting and demolition applications to trigger the detonation of explosive charges. Their working principle is based on the explosive reaction of a fine explosive powder on the tubing's inner surface, generating a shock wave traveling at a velocity of 2,100 m/s along the length of the tube, without destroying it. One of
the key aspects of the manufacturing process of these shock tubes is the size and morphology of the explosive powder grains and their distribution on the inner wall of the tube, in order to propagate the shockwave efficiently and reliably. For the first time, synchrotron X-ray computed tomography has been used to characterize non-destructively the explosive powder grains, typically Al/HMX between 10 and 20 μm in size, in terms of morphology and 3D distribution but also to characterise the presence and location of defects
within the shock tube walls.
Complex materials (e.g., porous ceramics) need high resolution techniques at multi-scale levels. Microstructure is intimately linked to properties and performance. One technique (or even a few techniques) is not enough. X-ray refraction and CT are very powerful tools. Non-destructive characterisation and quantitative image analysis techniques (2D and 3D) are necessary to understand the anisotropy.
The paper presents the results of a series of combined mechanical and in-situ morphological investigations on highstrength strain-hardening cement-based Composites (SHCC). Tension and compression experiments were performed in a CT scanner employing a dedicated mechanical testing rig. The in-situ microtomographic scans enabled correlating the measured specimen response with relevant microstructural features and fracture processes. The microstructural segmentation of SHCC was performed in the framework of Deep Learning and it targeted an accurate segmentation of pores, fibers and aggregates. Besides their accurate volumetric representation, these phases were quantified in terms of content, size and orientation. The fracture processes were monitored at different loading stages and Digital Volume Correlation (DVC) was employed to spatially map the strains and cracks in the specimens loaded in compression. The DVC analysis highlighted the effect of loading conditions, specimen geometry and material heterogeneity at the mesolevel on the strain distribution and fracture localization.
Ceramics and their composites are in general brittle materials because they are predominantly made up of ionic and covalent bonds that avoid dislocation motion at room temperature. However, a remarkable ductile behavior has been observed on newly developed 11 mol.% ceria-stabilized zirconia (11Ce-TZP) composite containing fine alumina (8 vol.% Al2O3) and elongated strontium hexa-aluminate (8 vol.% SrAl12O19) grains. The as-synthesized composite also has shown full resistance to Low Temperature Degradation (LTD), relatively high strength and exceptionally high Weibull modulus, allowing its use in a broader range of biomedical applications. In this study, to deepen the understanding of plastic deformation in Ce-TZP based composites that could soon be used for manufacturing dental implants, different mechanical tests were applied on the material, followed by complete microstructural characterization. Distinct from pure Ce-TZP material or other zirconia-based ceramics developed in the past, the material here studied can be permanently strained without affecting the Young modulus, indicating that the ductile response of tested samples cannot be associated to damage occurrence. This ductility is related to the stress-induced tetragonal to monoclinic (t-m) zirconia phase transformation, analogue to Transformation-Induced Plasticity (TRIP) steels, where retained austenite is transformed to martensite. The aim of this study is to corroborate if the observed plasticity can be associated exclusively to the zirconia t-m phase transformation, or also to microcraking induced by the transformation. The t-m transformed-zones produced after bending and biaxial tests were examined by X-ray refraction and SEM/TEM coupled with Raman. The results revealed that the observed elastic-plastic behavior occurs without extensive microcracking, confirming a purely elastic-plastic behavior driven by the phase transformation (absence of damage).
3D Crack analysis in hydrogen charged lean duplex stainless steel with synchrotron refraction CT
(2016)
Hydrogen in metals can cause a degradation of the mechanical properties, the so-called hydrogen embrittlement. In combination with internal stresses, hydrogen assisted cracking (HAC) can occur. This phenomenon is not completely understood yet. To better characterise the cracking behaviour, it is important to gain information about the evolution of the 3D crack network. For this purpose samples of lean duplex stainless steel were loaded with hydrogen by means of electrochemical charging and investigated by means of synchrotron refraction CT and SEM fractography after uniaxial tensile loading. Synchrotron refraction CT is an analyser-based imaging (ABI) technique. It uses a Si (111) single crystal as analyser, which is placed into the beam path between sample and detector. According to Bragg’s law only incident x-rays within a narrow range around the Bragg-angle are diffracted from the analyser into the detector. Hence, the analyser acts as an angular filter for the transmitted beam. This filtering allows to turn the refraction and scattering of x-rays into image contrast. Refraction occurs at all interfaces, where the density of the material changes and is more sensitive to density changes than the attenuation. Therefore, it is possible to detect smaller cracks than with classical x-ray imaging techniques, like CT, with comparable spacial resolution. It also visualises the 3D structure of the cracks and gains quantitative information about their morphology and distribution. Since cracks introduced by HAC are usually very small and have a small opening displacement, synchrotron refraction CT is expected to be well suited for imaging this cracking mechanism and can be a valuable tool to characterise the formation and the evolution of a 3D crack network.
To better understand the mechanism of hydrogen assisted cracking (HAC), it is important to investigate the 3D structure of the cracks non-destructively. Since, cracks introduced by HAC are usually very small, conventional x-ray imaging methods often lack the required spatial resolution.
However, the detection of those cracks can be enhanced by taking advantage of refraction at interfaces within the sample.
To image this refractive deflection we employ analyser based imaging (ABI). In this work we aim at proving the enhanced crack detection of ABI by investigating an alluminum alloy weld.
While the problem of the identification of mechanisms of hydrogen assisted damage has and is being thoroughly studied, the quantitative analysis of such damage still lacks suitable tools. In fact, while, for instance, electron microscopy yields excellent characterization, the quantitative analysis of damage requires at the same time large field-of-views and high spatial resolution. Synchrotron X-ray refraction techniques do possess both features. In this work, we show how synchrotron X-ray refraction computed tomography (SXRCT) can quantify damage induced by hydrogen embrittlement in a lean duplex steel, yielding results that overperform even those achievable by synchrotron X-ray absorption computed tomography. As already reported in literature, but this time using a non-destructive technique, we show that the hydrogen charge does not penetrate to the center of tensile specimens. By the comparison between virgin and hydrogen-charged specimens, we deduce that cracks in the specimen bulk are due to the rolling process rather than hydrogen-assisted. We show that (micro)cracks propagate from the surface of tensile specimens to the interior with increasing applied strain, and we deduce that a significant crack propagation can only be observed short before rupture.
Using SXRR to Probe the Nature of Discontinuities in SLM Additive Manufactured Inconel 718 Specimens
(2020)
The utilization of additive manufacturing (AM) to fabricate robust structural components relies on understanding the nature of internal anomalies or discontinuities, which can compromise the structural integrity. While some discontinuities in AM microstructures stem from similar mechanisms as observed in more traditional processes such as casting, others are unique to the AM process. Discontinuities in AM are challenging to detect, due to their submicron size and orientation dependency. Toward the goal of improving structural integrity, minimizing discontinuities in an AM build requires an understanding of the mechanisms of formation to mitigate their occurrence. This study utilizes various techniques to evaluate the shape, size, nature and distribution of discontinuities in AM Inconel 718, in a non-hot isostatic pressed (HIPed) as-built, non-HIPed and direct age, and HIPed with two step age samples. Non-destructive synchrotron radiation refraction and transmission radiography (SXRR) provides additional information beyond that obtained with destructive optical microscopy. SXRR was able to distinguish between voids, cracks and lack of melt in, due to its sensitivity to the orientation of the discontinuity.
Porosity in additively manufactured materials, such as laser powder bed fusion Ti-Al6-V4, can play an important role in their mechanical performance. Not only the total porosity but also the shape/morphology of the individual pores need to be considered. Therefore, it is necessary to determine the distributions of different defect types (especially fusing defects and keyhole pores) and their dependence on process parameters. We show that synchrotron X-ray refraction radiography allows analysis of large samples (up to several millimeters) without compromising the detectability of submicrometer defects. Correspondingly, a classification tool is introduced that is able to quantitatively distinguish defects such as keyhole pores and binding defects with a confidence level of 94 %, even when the shape cannot be discerned because of limited spatial resolution.
Zirconia-based cast refractories are widely used for glass furnace applications. Since they have to withstand harsh chemical as well as thermo-mechanical environments, internal stresses and microcracking are often present in such materials under operating conditions (sometimes in excess of 1700 °C). We studied the evolution of thermal (CTE) and mechanical (Young’s modulus) properties as a function of temperature in a fused-cast refractory containing 94 wt.% of monoclinic ZrO2 and 6 wt.% of a silicate glassy phase. With the aid of X-ray refraction techniques (yielding the internal specific surface in materials), we also monitored the evolution of microcracking as a function of thermal cycles (crossing the martensitic phase transformation around 1000 °C) under externally applied stress. We found that external compressive stress leads to a strong decrease of the internal surface per unit volume, but a tensile load has a similar (though not so strong) effect. In agreement with existing literature on -eucryptite microcracked ceramics, we could explain These phenomena by microcrack closure in the load direction in the compression case, and by microcrack propagation (rather than microcrack nucleation) under tensile conditions.
Modern air-liners and wind turbine rotor blades are made up primarily of fiber reinforced plastics. Failure of these materials heavily impairs the serviceability and the operational safety. Consequently, knowledge of the failure behavior under static and cyclic loads is of great interest to estimate the operational strength and to compare the performance of different materials. Ideally, the damage evolution under operational load is determined with in situ non-destructive testing techniques. Here, we report in-situ synchrotron X-ray imaging of tensile stress induced cracks in carbon fiber reinforced plastics due to inter-fiber failure. An inhouse designed compact tensile testing machine with a load range up to 15 kN was integrated into the beamline. Since conventional radiographs do not reveal sufficient contrast to distinguish cracks due to inter-fiber failure and micro cracking from fiber bundles, the Diffraction Enhanced Imaging (DEI) technique is applied in order to separate primary and scattered (refracted) radiation by means of an analyzer crystal. This technique allows fast measurements over large fields-of-view and is ideal for in-situ investigations. Imaging and the tensile test are run at the highest possible frame rate (0.7 s-1 ) and the lowest possible strain rate (5.5∙10-4 s -1 ). For 0°/90° non-crimp fabrics, the first inter-fiber cracks occur at 380 MPa (strain 0.8 %). Prior to failure at about 760 MPa (strain 2.0 %), we observe the evolution of nearly equidistant (1 mm distance) cracks running across the entire sample in the fully damaged state.
3D imaging techniques are very fashionable nowadays, and allow enormous progress in understanding ceramic microstructure, its evolution, and its link to mechanical, thermal, and transport properties. In this feature article, we report the use of a powerful, yet not so wide-spread, set of X-ray techniques based on refraction effects. X-ray refraction allows determining internal specific surface (surface per unit volume) in a non-destructive fashion, position and orientation sensitive, and with a nanometric detectability. While the techniques are limited by the X-ray absorption of the material under investigation, we demonstrate showcases of ceramics and composite materials, where understanding of process parameter influence or simply of microstructural parameters could be achieved in a way unrivalled even by high-resolution techniques such as electron microscopy or computed tomography.
The most substantial innovations in radiographic imaging techniques of the last two decades aim at enhanced image contrast of weakly absorbing micro and nano structures by taking advantage of X-ray refraction effects occurring at outer and inner surfaces. The applications range from fibre reinforced plastics to biological tissues. These techniques comprise, among others, X-ray refraction topography, diffraction enhanced imaging, phase contrast imaging, Talbot-Lau grating interferometry, and refraction enhanced imaging. They all make use of selective beam deflections up to a few minutes of arc: the X-ray refraction effect. In contrast to diffraction, this type of interaction has a 100 % scattering cross section, as shown experimentally. Since X-ray refraction is very sensitive to the orientation of interfaces, it is additionally a tool to detect, e.g., fibre or pore orientation. If the detector resolution exceeds the size of (small) individual features, one detects the integral information (of inner surfaces) within the gauge volume. We describe the above-mentioned techniques, and show their experimental implementation in the lab and at a synchrotron source. We also show strategies for data processing and quantitative analysis.
While structural ceramics usually display a brittle mechanical behavior, their composites may show nonlinearities, mostly due to microcracking. Herein, the stiffness evolution of a sandwich-like laminate of an Al2O3 15%vol. ZrO2 matrix reinforced with Nextel 610 fibers is studied as a function of number of cycles N in tension. The stiffness of the composite degrades with increasing N, indicating microcracking. However, synchrotron X-ray refraction radiography shows that the internal specific surface of such cracks varies differently. A modeling strategy is developed for the calculation of the equivalent stiffness of mixtures (first the matrix and then the sandwich), based on the Voigt and Reuß schemes. The Bruno–Kachanov model is then used to estimate the initial microcrack density in the matrix (due to the thermal expansion mismatch) and the amount of microcracking increase upon cyclic loading. The stiffness in the composite degrades dramatically already after 20 000 cycles but then remains nearly constant. The combination of mechanical testing, quantitative imaging analysis, and modeling provides insights into the damage mechanisms acting: microcrack propagation is more active than microcrack initiation upon cyclic loading, but the second also occurs. This scenario is similar but not equal to previous results on porous and microcracked ceramics.
Additive Manufacturing (AM) through the Selective Laser Melting (SLM) route offers ample scope for producing geometrically complex parts compared to the conventional subtractive manufacturing strategies. Nevertheless, the residual stresses which develop during the fabrication can limit application of the SLM components by reducing the load bearing capacity and by inducing unwanted distortion, depending on the boundary conditions specified during manufacturing. The present study aims at characterizing the residual stress states in the SLM parts using different diffraction methods. The material used is the nickel based superalloy Inconel 718. Microstructure as well as the surface and bulk residual stresses were characterized. For the residual stress analysis, X-ray, synchrotron and neutron diffraction methods were used. The measurements were performed at BAM, at the EDDI beamline of -BESSY II synchrotronand the E3 line -BER II neutron reactor- of the Helmholtz-Zentrum für Materialien und Energie (HZB) Berlin. The results reveal significant differences in the residual stress states for the different characterization techniques employed, which indicates the dependence of the residual state on the penetration depth in the sample. For the surface residual stresses, longitudinal and transverse stress components from X-ray and synchrotron agree well and the obtained values were around the yield strength of the material. Furthermore, synchrotron mapping disclosed gradients along the width and length of the sample for the longitudinal and transverse stress components. On the other hand, lower residual stresses were found in the bulk of the material measured using neutron diffraction. The longitudinal component was tensile and decreased towards the boundary of the sample. In contrast, the normal component was nearly constant and compressive in nature. The transversal component was almost negligible. The results indicate that a stress re-distribution takes place during the deposition of the consecutive layers. Further investigations are planned to study the phenomenon in detail.
In this paper we report on the characterization by X-ray computed tomography of calcium phosphate (CaP) and polycaprolactone (PCL) coatings on Ti-6Al-4V alloy scaffolds used as a material for medical implants. The cylindrical scaffold has greater porosity of the inner part than the external part, thus, mimicking trabecular and cortical bone, respectively. The prismatic scaffolds have uniform porosity. Surface of the scaffolds was modified with calcium phosphate (CaP) and polycaprolactone (PCL) by dip-coating to improve biocompatibility and mechanical properties. Computed tomography performed with X-ray and synchrotron radiation revealed the defects of structure and morphology of CaP and PCL coatings showing small platelet-like and spider-web-like structures, respectively.
In this paper we report on the characterization by X-ray computed tomography of calcium phosphate (CaP) and polycaprolactone (PCL) coatings on Ti-6Al-4V alloy scaffolds used as a material for medical implants. The cylindrical scaffold has greater porosity of the inner part than the external part, thus, mimicking trabecular and cortical bone, respectively. The prismatic scaffolds have uniform porosity. Surface of the scaffolds was modified with calcium phosphate (CaP) and polycaprolactone (PCL) by dip-coating to improve biocompatibility and mechanical properties. Computed tomography performed with X-ray and synchrotron radiation revealed the defects of structure and morphology of CaP and PCL coatings showing small platelet-like and spider-web-like structures, respectively.
Electron Beam Powder Bed Fusion-manufactured (E-PBF) porous components with narrow pores or channels and rough walls or struts can be filled with trapped powder after the manufacturing process. Adequate powder removal procedures are required, especially for high-density porous structures. In the present research, sheetbased porous structures with different thicknesses based on triply periodic minimal surfaces fabricated by EPBF were subjected to different post-processing methods, including a traditional powder recovery system for EPBF, chemical etching and ultrasound vibration-assisted powder removal. Wall thickness, internal defects, microstructure and morphology features, powder distribution inside the specimens, mechanical properties and deformation modes were investigated. A powder recovery system could not remove all residual powder from dense structures. In turn, chemical etching was effective for surface morphology changes and subsurface layers elimination but not for powder removal, as it affected the wall thickness, considerably influencing the mechanical properties of the whole structure. The ultrasound vibration method was quite effective for the removal of residual powder from sheet-based TMPS structures and without a severe degradation of mechanical properties. 10.1016/j.msea.2022.144479 Ultrasound vibration also caused grain refinement.
Targeting biomedical applications, Triply Periodic Minimal Surface (TPMS) gyroid sheet-based structures were successfully manufactured for the first time by Electron Beam Melting in two different production Themes, i.e., inputting a zero (Wafer Theme) and a 200 µm (Melt Theme) wall thickness. Initial assumption was that in both cases, EBM manufacturing should yield the structures with similar mechanical properties as in a Wafer-mode, as wall thickness is determined by the minimal beam spot size of ca 200 µm. Their surface morphology, geometry, and mechanical properties were investigated by means of electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray Computed Tomography (XCT), and uniaxial tests (both compression and tension). Application of different manufacturing Themes resulted in specimens with different wall thicknesses while quasi-elastic gradients for different Themes was found to be of 1.5 GPa, similar to the elastic modulus of human cortical bone tissue. The specific energy absorption at 50% strain was also similar for the two types of structures. Finite element simulations were also conducted to qualitatively analyze the deformation process and the stress distribution under mechanical load. Simulations demonstrated that in the elastic regime wall, regions oriented parallel to the load are primarily affected by deformation. We could conclude that gyroids manufactured in Wafer and Melt Themes are equally effective in mimicking mechanical properties of the bones.
An ultrasonic vibration post-treatment procedure was suggested for additively manufac-tured lattices. The aim of the present research was to investigate mechanical properties andthe differences in mechanical behavior and fracture modes of Ti6Al4V scaffolds treated withtraditional powder recovery system (PRS) and ultrasound vibration (USV). Scanning electronmicroscopy (SEM) was used to investigate the strut surface and the fracture surface mor-phology. X-ray computed tomography (CT) was employed to evaluate the inner structure,strut dimensions, pore size, as well as the surface morphology of additively manufacturedporous scaffolds. Uniaxial compression tests were conducted to obtain elastic modulus,compressive ultimate strength and yield stress. Finite element analysis was performedfor a body-centered cubic (BCC) element-based model and for CT-based reconstructiondata, as well as for a two-zone scaffold model to evaluate stress distribution during elasticdeformation. The scaffold with PRS post treatment displayed ductile behavior, while USVtreated scaffold displayed fragile behavior. Double barrel formation of PRS treated scaffoldwas observed during deformation. Finite element analysis for the CT-based reconstructionrevealed the strong impact of surface morphology on the stress distribution in comparisonwith BCC cell model because of partially molten metal particles on the surface of struts,which usually remain unstressed.
The additive manufacturing of low elastic modulus alloys that have a certain level of porosity for biomedical needs is a growing area of research. Here, we show the results of manufacturing of porous and dense samples by a laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) of Ti-Nb alloy, using two distinctive fusion strategies. The nanostructured Ti-Nb alloy powders were produced by mechanical alloying and have a nanostructured state with nanosized grains up to 90 nm. The manufactured porous samples have pronounced open porosity and advanced roughness, contrary to dense samples with a relatively smooth surface profile. The structure of both types of samples after LPBF is formed by uniaxial grains having micro- and nanosized features. The inner structure of the porous samples is comprised of an open interconnected system of pores. The volume fraction of isolated porosity is 2 vol. % and the total porosity is 20 vol. %. Cell viability was assessed in vitro for 3 and 7 days using the MG63 cell line. With longer culture periods, cells showed an increased cell density over the entire surface of a porous Ti-Nb sample. Both types of samples are not cytotoxic and could be used for further in vivo studies.
The determination of residual stresses becomes more complicated with increasing complexity of the structures investigated. Additive manufacturing techniques generally allow the production of ‘lattice structures’ without any additional manufacturing step. These lattice structures consist of thin struts and are thus susceptible to internal stress-induced distortion and even cracks. In most cases, internal stresses remain locked in the structures as residual stress.
The determination of the residual stress in lattice structures through nondestructive neutron diffraction is described in this work. It is shown how two difficulties can be overcome: (a) the correct alignment of the lattice structures within the neutron beam and (b) the correct determination of the residual stress field in a representative part of the structure. The magnitude and the direction of residual stress are discussed. The residual stress in the strut was found to be uniaxial and to follow the orientation of the strut, while the residual stress in the knots was more hydrostatic. Additionally, it is shown that strain measurements in at least seven independent directions are necessary for the estimation of the principal stress directions. The measurement directions should be chosen according to the sample geometry and an informed choice on the possible strain field. If the most prominent direction is not measured, the error in the calculated stress magnitude increases considerably.
Layer-by-layer additive manufacturing (AM) by means of laser-powder bed Fusion (L-PBF) offers many prospects regarding the design of lattice structures used, for example, in gas turbines. However, defects such as bulk porosity, Surface roughness, and re-entrant features are exacerbated in nonvertical structures, such as tilted struts. The characterization and quantification of these kinds of
defects are essential for the correct estimation of fracture and fatigue properties.
Herein, cylindrical struts fabricated by L-PBF are investigated by means of X-ray computed tomography (XCT), with the aim of casting light on the dependence of the three kinds of defects (bulk porosity, surface roughness, and re-entrant features) on the build angle. Innovative analysis methods are proposed to correlate shape and position of pores, to determine the angular-resolved Surface roughness, and to quantify the amount of re-entrant surface features, q. A meshing of the XCT surface enables the correlation of q with the classical Surface roughness Pa. This analysis leads to the conclusion that there is a linear correlation between q and Pa. However, it is conjectured that there must be a threshold of surface roughness, below which no re-entrant features can be build.
We investigated the possibility of minimizing tensile matrix residual stresses in age hardenable aluminum alloy metal matrix composites without detrimentally affect their mechanical properties (such as yield strength).
Specifically, we performed thermal treatments at different temperatures and times in an age-hardenable aluminum matrix composite 2014Al-15vol%Al2O3. Using X-ray synchrotron radiation diffraction and mechanical tests, we show that below a certain treatment temperature (250 °C) it is possible to identify an appropriate thermal treatment capable of relaxing residual stress in this composite while even increasing its yield strength, with respect to the as processed conditions.
The creep strengthening mechanisms in (age-hardenable) aluminum alloys are analyzed on the basis of a new microstructural study of powder samples, an analysis of a comprehensive revision of creep data from the literature, and a new modeling approach. A strategy based on the strength difference (SD) method to separate the contributions of solid solution atoms and precipitates to creep strengthening is proposed. The new methodology considers the combination of the two contributions avoiding the need of a threshold stress term in the creep equation. The contribution of both precipitates and solid solution is taken into account by means of the analysis of the lattice parameter variation with aging time. For this study, powders of two commercial AA2xxx alloys have been analyzed using diffraction methods. The experimental results are modeled using Lubarda’s approach combined with the SD method.
The creep strengthening mechanisms in (age-hardenable) aluminum alloys are analyzed on the basis of a new microstructural study of powder samples, an analysis of a comprehensive revision of creep data from the literature, and a new modeling approach. A strategy based on the strength difference (SD) method to separate the contributions of solid solution atoms and precipitates to creep strengthening is proposed. The new methodology considers the combination of the two contributions avoiding the need of a threshold stress term in the creep equation. The contribution of both precipitates and solid solution is taken into account by means of the analysis of the lattice parameter variation with aging time. For this study, powders of two commercial AA2xxx alloys have been analyzed using diffraction methods. The experimental results are modeled using Lubarda's approach combined with the SD method.