Ultra-High Speed Printing Regime in Laser Powder Bed Fusion of Highly Reflective Metals

Published

April 5, 2026

Author(s)

Natalya Kublik, Laura Duenas Gonzalez, David Deisenroth, zhengtao gan, Bruno Azeredo

Abstract

Additive manufacturing of highly reflective metals, such as copper and aluminum, often entail excessive energy losses, especially in laser powder bed fusion (LPBF). To compensate for reflected losses, high powered lasers and low scan speeds (i.e., ≤ 0.8 m/s) are generally required. This work introduces a new laser-matter interaction regime with enhanced absorption for copper at scan speeds greater than 4 m/s. To reveal this mode's mechanism, in-situ melt pool imaging was synchronized with laser location tracking. At scan speeds greater than 4 m/s at 400 W, the laser partially irradiates over the uncoalesced region ahead, allowing for multiple laser reflections. The competing timescales that are available and required for the coalescence of molten particles are discussed via analytical models. This understanding challenges the idea that density monotonically decreases with increasing scan speeds and offers opportunities for fast and energy-efficient LPBF of highly reflective metals, though printing parameters optimization is still needed.

Citation

Additive Manufacturing

Volume

121

Issue

2214-8604

Pub Type

Journals

Download Paper

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.addma.2026.105142

Local Download

Keywords

Metal additive manufacturing Laser-matter interaction Increased absorption Sustainable manufacturing Copper LPBF Selective laser melting

Citation

Kublik, N. , Duenas Gonzalez, L. , Deisenroth, D. , gan, Z. and Azeredo, B. (2026), Ultra-High Speed Printing Regime in Laser Powder Bed Fusion of Highly Reflective Metals, Additive Manufacturing, [online], https://doi.org/10.1016/j.addma.2026.105142, https://tsapps.nist.gov/publication/get_pdf.cfm?pub_id=959221 (Accessed March 26, 2026)