Measurements of Melt Pool Geometry and Cooling Rates of Individual Laser Traces on IN625 Bare Plates

Published

February 5, 2020

Author(s)

Brandon M. Lane, Jarred C. Heigel, Richard E. Ricker, Ivan Zhirnov, Vladimir Khromchenko, Jordan S. Weaver, Thien Q. Phan, Mark R. Stoudt, Sergey Mekhontsev, Lyle E. Levine

Abstract

The complex physical nature of the laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) process warrants use of multiphysics computational simulations to predict or design optimal operating parameters or resultant part qualities such as microstructure or defect concentration. Many of these simulations rely on tuning based on characteristics of the laser-induced melt pool such as the melt pool geometry (length, width, and depth). Additionally, many of numerous interacting variables that make LPBF process so complex can be reduced and controlled by performing simple, single track experiments on bare (no powder) substrates, yet still produce important and applicable physical results. The AMB2018-02 benchmark tests and associated challenges were designed for this application. This paper describes the experiment design for the AMB2018-02 tests, and the measurement results for the CHAL-AMB2018-02-MP melt pool geometry and CHAL-AMB2018-02-CR melt pool cooling rate performed on two LPBF systems. Several factors, such as accurate laser spot size, were determined after the 2018 AM Bench conference, with results of those additional tests reported here. The compile results for the challenges can be found in detail Table 3, and summarized in Table 4.

Citation

Integrating Materials and Manufacturing Innovation

Volume

9

Pub Type

Journals

Download Paper

https://doi.org/10.1007/s40192-020-00169-1

Local Download

Keywords

additive manufacturing, thermography, melt pool, laser powder bed fusion, benchmark

Citation

Lane, B. , Heigel, J. , Ricker, R. , Zhirnov, I. , Khromchenko, V. , Weaver, J. , Phan, T. , Stoudt, M. , Mekhontsev, S. and Levine, L. (2020), Measurements of Melt Pool Geometry and Cooling Rates of Individual Laser Traces on IN625 Bare Plates, Integrating Materials and Manufacturing Innovation, [online], https://doi.org/10.1007/s40192-020-00169-1 (Accessed October 14, 2025)