Additively Producing Improved Steel Using Synchrotron X-ray Techniques

Laser additive manufacturing, a form of 3D printing that accumulates parts layer-by-layer by melting and resolidifying steel powders– has ushered in a renaissance for researchers discovering exactly how to design distinct architectural materials. In a new study led by Stony Creek College, scientists shed light on the link between the deterioration habits and underlying materials structure in laser additively manufactured 316L stainless steel, a deterioration-resistant metal used extensively in Naval applications. This allows the scientists to map paths for engineering an even much better deterioration-resistant printed alloy.

The findings, released in the November issue of Additive Production, can make it possible to manufacture a very corrosion-resistant stainless steel by engineering its defects at the nanoscale. The research likewise showed that multimodal synchrotron techniques are becoming essential devices in establishing relationships between the printing process, underlying material structure, and its understood efficiency.

Jason Trelewicz, Ph.D., matching author and Associate Professor of Materials Scientific Research and Engineering in the University of Design and Applied Sciences and the Institute for Advanced Computational Scientific Research, describes that the major focus of the study was to understand the corrosion habits of laser additively produced 316L stainless steel in the context of microstructural imperfection that form as a result of the rapid solidification rates inherent to the 3D printing process. Jason Trelewicz continues by adding that the tam shows that while consistent surface area rust of the published 316L resembles a conventional 316L alloy, the printed material displays a raised sensitivity to pitting, especially in the examples with the greatest imperfection density uncovered from our synchrotron measurements.

The team, containing research scientists and students in Professor Trelewicz’s group, the Engineered Microstructures, and Radiation Effects Lab, collaborating with Brookhaven National Research laboratory partners, conducted the synchrotron X-ray experiments at Brookhaven’s National Synchrotron Light II (NSLS-II). The team carried out correlative electron microscopy at the Center for Functional Nanomaterials (CFN) at Brookhaven and deterioration dimensions executed at Stony Brook University.

Past the growth of novel additively made materials, Trelewicz claims the findings highlight the essential role correlative synchrotron X-ray and electron microscopy dimensions can play in building a detailed picture of volume-averaged microstructural patterns in fabrics established by laser additive manufacturing.

Originally published by: news.stonybrook.edu

Reference: David J. Sprouster et al, Dislocation microstructure and its influence on corrosion behavior in laser additively manufactured 316L stainless steel, Additive Manufacturing (2021). DOI: 10.1016/j.addma.2021.102263