Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing of Steel: Deposition Patterns Effect on Microstructure and Mechanical Properties

Recently, Metal Inert Gas (MIG) -based weld deposition process is one of the deposition-based Additive Manufacturing (AM) processes. This technique has created considerable interest due to the advantages it offers of being able to produce fully functional, complex, dense metallic objects. The study mainly aims to investigate the influence of a variety of deposition patterns on the microstructure and the mechanical properties of steel materials built on a low alloy steel substrate by MIG process. Experiments were carried out using a semi-automated MIG welding to built the samples manufactured using five different deposition patterns (longitudinal, transverse, right network, oblique and oblique network). Microscopy generally showed coarse equiaxed grains in the lower regions, fine equiaxed grains in the middle regions and columnar grains in the upper regions. The maximum hardness was (201HV) for the sample built with the oblique pattern, while the minimum hardness was (170 HV) for the sample built longitudinally. The highest average tensile strength value was (480 MPa) for the sample built longitudinally. The fracture mode was significantly ductile.The lowest average tensile strength value was however (262.5 MPa) for the sample built transversely, and the fracture mode was brittle

Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing of Steel: Deposition Patterns Effect on Microstructure and Mechanical Properties

Recently, Metal Inert Gas (MIG) -based weld deposition process is one of the deposition-based Additive Manufacturing (AM) processes. This technique has created considerable interest due to the advantages it offers of being able to produce fully functional, complex, dense metallic objects. The study mainly aims to investigate the influence of a variety of deposition patterns on the microstructure and the mechanical properties of steel materials built on a low alloy steel substrate by MIG process. Experiments were carried out using a semi-automated MIG welding to built the samples manufactured using five different deposition patterns (longitudinal, transverse, right network, oblique and oblique network). Microscopy generally showed coarse equiaxed grains in the lower regions, fine equiaxed grains in the middle regions and columnar grains in the upper regions. The maximum hardness was (201HV) for the sample built with the oblique pattern, while the minimum hardness was (170 HV) for the sample built longitudinally. The highest average tensile strength value was (480 MPa) for the sample built longitudinally. The fracture mode was significantly ductile.The lowest average tensile strength value was however (262.5 MPa) for the sample built transversely, and the fracture mode was brittle