Microhardness and Microstructural Evolution of Additive Manufactured GRCop-42 by Electron Beam Powder Bed Fusion

Authors:

Geethapriyan Thangamani (1), Matteo Vanzetti (1), Stefano Felicioni (1), Anna Köll (2), Elisa Padovano (1,3), Federica Bondioli (1,3)

1-Politecnico di Torino, Italia

2-Research & Development Engineer, METALPINE, Austria

3-Consorzio Interuniversitario Nazionale per la Scienza e Tecnologia dei Materiali (INSTM), Italia

Abstract:

GRCop-42 samples were additively manufactured by varying the electron beam powder bed fusion (EB-PBF) process parameters in a volumetric energy density (VED) range from 112.9 – 213.3 J/mm3: laser scan speed was varied from 450–850 mm/s, while voltage, power, line-offset and layer thickness were fixed parameters, to study their influence on the density, melt pool structure, and microstructure. Under the optimal conditions, the microhardness of the GRCop-42 samples achieved the highest value of 112.5 ± 6.3 HV. In addition, the microstructural evolution as a function of VED variation on additive manufactured GRCop-42 samples was examined using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray Diffraction. From the microstructure observation, Cr2Nb precipitates, formed in the alloy during the printing process, reinforce the Cu matrix by preventing dislocation motion and impeding grain development.

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.59499/EP246281101