Voxel-based full-field eigenstrain reconstruction of residual stresses in additive manufacturing parts using height digital image correlation

The formation of residual stresses is inevitable during the additive manufacturing of metallic parts due to thermo-mechanicals effects, but the chaotic nature of printing processes makes it impossible to have a comprehensive understanding about the magnitude and distribution of these residuals. The voxel-based eigenstrain (inherent strain) reconstruction method is capable of the full-field reconstruction of residual stresses in discontinuous processing bodies at a scale that depends on the resolution of experimental data without using simplifying assumptions and regularisation functions. This advanced method firstly maps the distribution of eigenstrains and then quantifies corresponding residual stresses, residual elastic strains, and displacements by a cost-effective linear elastic computational framework. The reliability of this process solely depends on the quality of experimental data and the availability of computational power. The motivation behind this study is the use of the voxel-based eigenstrain reconstruction method for the full-field mapping of complex residual stress fields, that cannot be predicted by regularizing assumptions, in discontinuous processing additive manufacturing parts. The height Digital Image Correlation (hDIC) technique satisfied the need for high-quality experimental data by calculating triaxial displacements, corresponding to the elastic response of CM 247 LC powder bed fusion (PBF) additive manufacturing part after changes in the boundary conditions due to separation from the base, using optical profilometry measurements at a resolution adjusted in a way to reconstruct Type I residual stresses. Three components of displacements calculated by the hDIC were used to map the distribution of three components of eigenstrains for the reconstruction of six residual stress, six residual elastic strain and three displacement components that belong to the before and after separating from the base states. The reliability of calculations has been validated by monochromatic synchrotron X-ray beams in powder diffraction mode from the same surface of optical profilometry measurements and in transmission mode from the sampling volumes

Grain structure engineering of NiTi shape memory alloys by intensive plastic deformation

To explore an effective route of customizing the superelasticity (SE) of NiTi shape memory alloys via modifying the grain structure, binary Ni55Ti45 (wt) alloys were fabricated in as-cast, hot swaged, and hot-rolled conditions, presenting contrasting grain sizes and grain boundary types. In situ synchrotron X-ray Laue microdiffraction and in situ synchrotron X-ray powder diffraction techniques were employed to unravel the underlying grain structure mechanisms that cause the diversity of SE performance among the three materials. The evolution of lattice rotation, strain field, and phase transformation has been revealed at the micro- and mesoscale, and the effect of grain structure on SE performance has been quantified. It was found that (i) the Ni4Ti3 and NiTi2 precipitates are similar among the three materials in terms of morphology, size, and orientation distribution; (ii) phase transformation happens preferentially near high-angle grain boundary (HAGB) yet randomly in low-angle grain boundary (LAGB) structures; (iii) the smaller the grain size, the higher the phase transformation nucleation kinetics, and the lower the propagation kinetics; (iv) stress concentration happens near HAGBs, while no obvious stress concentration can be observed in the LAGB grain structure during loading; (v) the statistical distribution of strain in the three materials becomes asymmetric during loading; (vi) three grain lattice rotation modes are identified and termed for the first time, namely, multi-extension rotation, rigid rotation, and nondispersive rotation; and (vii) the texture evolution of B2 austenite and B19′ martensite is not strongly dependent on the grain structure