Parameter Optimisation in Selective Laser Melting on C300 Steel

Abstract

Additive manufacturing (AM) of metallic materials is increasingly being adopted in numerous sectors, such as biomedicine, aerospace or automotive industries, due to its versatility in the creation of complex geometries and the minimisation of material waste when compared to traditional subtractive methods. In order to ensure a reliable operation of these parts, however, an in-depth study of the effect of additive manufacturing on mechanical properties, including tensile, fatigue and fracture resistance, is necessary. Among the vast number of methods and materials, this project is focused in one of the most promising techniques for the industry: Selective Laser Melting (SLM) for the production of a tools steel, in particular C300 steel components for the automotive sector. The main objective of this paper is to optimise some of the key parameters in the printing process, such as laser power, laser speed and hatch spacing. These variables are essential to obtain parts with good resistance. To that purpose, tensile tests were performed in 3D printed specimens, and then elastoplastic properties were extracted, organised and analysed through a design of experiments for the subsequent output fitting using the response surface methodology.