The effects of post-processing on the local fracture toughness properties of electron beam powder bed fusion Ti-6Al-4V alloy

Rapidly developing additive technologies for metallic parts production have led to the develop-ment of a wide range of methods supporting this field, including mechanical properties charac-terization. Components produced by AM processes are built spot to spot and layer by layer and that leads to varying local heat absorption and distribution, resulting in varying local properties depending on the shape complexity and build parameters. Different properties in different di-rections and at various component locations can be expected. Since AM parts are often sub-scale and/or with topological complexity, mechanical charac-terization with the use of standard specimens is not typically possible and small-sized specimen techniques have to be developed and applied. In the current paper, three AM produced parts made of Ti-6Al-4V by Electron Beam Powder Bed Fusion (EB-PBF) technology have been inves-tigated. Three material conditions are reported here: as-deposited, stress relieved and HIP-ed. Local mechanical properties are assessed with the use of miniaturized compact tension (MCT) fracture toughness specimens and miniaturized tensile tests (MTT). The results are complemented by microstructural and fractographic analysis and are discussed in the light of literature values.

Automated summary

The paper investigates three additive manufactured parts made of Ti-6Al-4V using Electron Beam Powder Bed Fusion technology, assessing their local mechanical properties and discussing them in relation to literature values.