Influence of post processing on the micro-machinability of selective laser melted AlSi10Mg: an experimental investigation
Jino Joshy, Allan George, Basil Kuriachen, Jose Mathew
Abstract
In the present era, machinability studies of selective laser melted (SLM) samples are immensely significant due to the rapid development in hybrid additive manufacturing. In such hybrid process material removal is also performed along with the 3D fabrication of near-net shaped products. Therefore, this work is an effort to compare the machinability characteristics of various samples, namely, cast and SLM produced AlSi10 Mg along with their effect when subjected to T6 solution heat treatment. In the cutting force analysis, it is found that there is an increase in the thrust force (114.8%) and cutting force (33.25%) for SLM manufactured samples in comparison with cast samples. On the other hand, heat treatment on the SLM fabricated samples resulted in the decrease of thrust force (6.94%) and cutting force (13.29%). In addition, the heat treated SLM produced sample showed a steep reduction in Sa by 86.5% compared to as-printed sample. Moreover, lengthier chips were observed in both cast and SLM fabricated specimens, whereas shorter and curlier chips were observed in both heat treated specimen.