A Review on Manufacturing Pure Refractory Metals by Selective Laser Melting

Refractory metals have increasingly attracted the attention of researchers due to their excellent high-temperature strength, thermal conductivity, radiation resistance, and biocompatibility for applications in extreme environments such as aerospace and nuclear industries. However, beyond traditional manufacturing processes, the complex post-treatment process, high cost, and difficulty in manufacturing complex geometry components limit its further application in modern industry. Compared to conventional manufacturing processes, selective laser melting (SLM) technology, an emerging technology, can significantly simplify the production process and has the advantage of manufacturing parts with complex geometry. Therefore, there is increasing research on manufacturing refractory metals using SLM technology. This article describes the current research progress of pure refractory metals manufactured by SLM regarding the preparation process, microstructure, metallurgical defects, and mechanical properties of refractory metals (tungsten, molybdenum, niobium, tantalum, etc.). Generally speaking, there are some technical difficulties in the fabrication of refractory alloys by SLM, summarized in this paper. Finally, the article presented the prospect of developing SLM refractory metals.