Nondestructive Assessment of Quality Characteristics of As-Built Additive Manufacturing Aeronautical AlSi10Mg and Inspection of Offset.

Abstract

AlSi10Mg is widely used in additively manufacturing aeronautical lattice and honeycomb structures. The unclear complex quality characteristics has been an obstacle of nondestructive testing of additive manufacturing (AM) AlSi10Mg, especially at its as-built state. This article attempts to reveal the quality characteristics of as-built AM aeronautical AlSi10Mg based on its conductivity characteristics. Experimental results show that the quality of manufacturing is nonuniform. The nonuniformity of each sample surface is systematically evaluated. Along the building direction, the quality is best in the initial few layers and decreases as the built height increases. On this basis, a reference curve is obtained and used to describe the quality characteristics of as-built AM component along the building direction. Based on the quality characteristics, the inspection of small offsets caused by accidental failures during the manufacturing process is carried out. The offsets not <37 μm are detected with the help of the reference curve, whereas they are not discovered by the radiography testing. It proves that the proposed method of offset inspection is highly sensitive.