Characterization of Wire-Arc Additively Manufactured (WAAM) of Titanium Alloy (Ti-6Al-4V) for Nanomechanical Properties

Abstract

The use of metal additive manufacturing (AM) becomes increasingly popular in many industries. AM can create functional parts with lower cost and lead time than the subtractive manufacturing processes. In AM technology, flaws or defects can be present due to variations in the manufacturing process or quality of raw materials, so AM technologies must still be developed to ensure acceptable and reliable quality of the product. Ensuring the high quality of the AM is crucial for safety in critical applications such as the aerospace industry. Various destructive and nondestructive techniques have been used for testing the AM components and their properties evaluation. The use of various nondestructive testing (NDT) techniques is becoming popular for defect identification and characterization of the parts, and still, more techniques need to be developed for better performance and higher optimization. In this study, wire-arc AM (WAAM) parts as-build and heat-treated components have been characterized for nanomechanical properties and finding possible defects created during the fabrication process. Nanoindentation, surface profilometry, and SEM (Scanning Electron Microscope) were used to characterize various wire-arc additive manufactured Titanium alloy (Ti-6Al-4V) samples. The samples were also being tested for material characteristics at different deposition locations and as-deposited versus heat-treated conditions.