Accelerating Alloy Development for Additive Manufacturing

Additive ManufacturingAdditive manufacturing (AM) is revolutionizing the production of complex superalloySuperalloys parts, yet its advancement is hindered by the high costs and extensive time required for atomizing powders from which new alloys are produced and tested. This study presents our approach to expedite and economize alloy developmentAlloy development for AM. At the heart of this method is the CALPHADCALculation of PHAse Diagrams (CALPHAD)-based multi-criteria optimization algorithm PyMultOpt, utilized for selecting potential alloys, which are then produced through arc-melting. Our innovative testing framework involves two key processes: (i) assessing alloy processability via electron beam remelting of bulk material, and (ii) evaluating mechanical propertiesMechanical properties after refining coarse-grained material via deformation and recrystallizationRecrystallization. Focusing on Alloy 247 and derivatives selected through PyMultOpt, our approach successfully emulates AM-like microstructuresMicrostructure in arc-melted material. The compressive creepCreep tests on the recrystallized microstructureMicrostructure of Alloy 247 indicate a minimal creepCreep rate comparable to that of AM specimens. Moreover, profilometry-based indentation plastometry tests at 760 °C offer a rapid, high-temperatureHigh temperature evaluation method, allowing for preliminary alloy ranking before extensive creep testingCreep testing. This study demonstrates that remelting and recrystallizationRecrystallization of bulk material can reproduce AM-like microstructuresMicrostructure, enabling a faster and more cost-effective assessment and ranking of new alloys in terms of their mechanical propertiesMechanical properties and AM-processability, as opposed to the traditional, powder-dependent alloy developmentAlloy development methods.