E-Thesis 30 views 2 downloads
Investigation into the Mechanical Properties and Microstructure of Stainless Steel 316L Additively Manufactured Parts / BETHAN GIRLING
Swansea University Author: BETHAN GIRLING
DOI (Published version): 10.23889/SUThesis.71967
Abstract
This thesis investigates Additive Manufactured (AM) Stainless Steel (SS) 316L parts using detailed experimentation and optical microscopy. Additive Layer Manufacturing (ALM) is a process of manufacturing parts by building them up layer by layer. Selective Laser Melting (SLM), which is the method inv...
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Swansea
2026
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| Institution: | Swansea University |
| Degree level: | Doctoral |
| Degree name: | Ph.D |
| Supervisor: | Sienz, J. |
| URI: | https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa71967 |
| Abstract: |
This thesis investigates Additive Manufactured (AM) Stainless Steel (SS) 316L parts using detailed experimentation and optical microscopy. Additive Layer Manufacturing (ALM) is a process of manufacturing parts by building them up layer by layer. Selective Laser Melting (SLM), which is the method investigated in this work, is a method by which consecutive thin layers of powder are melted by a laser in a pattern pre-defined by a CAD forming the cross section of a component. Although it’s a technology that is becoming mainstream in industry, there are still certain areas, which are not fully understood. The research here is aimed at finding out more on how built parts are affected by the process. This has been carried out by building a selection of parts using the same CAD designs but changing the parameters and powder used and subsequently measuring and testing these. Different laser powers, exposure times, laser patterns, layer rotations and heat treatment have been explored along with ‘virgin’ and ‘aged’ powder. A number of experimental tests including tensile, density and hardness were carried out, to investigate the variation seen in the properties of the manufactured AM parts due to the changing build parameters and due to powder reuse.These properties are then compared to conventional SS316L. In cases, parts with inadequate properties were found along with a majority more cases where parts with comparable properties to conventional SS316L were found. In addition to the properties of the parts, the microstructure has also been studied to see how this compares to conventional SS316L. It was found that parts produced by AM vary in microstructure and properties when compared to conventional SS316L. |
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| Keywords: |
Additive Manufacturing, Stainless Steel 316L, Mechanical Properties, Microstructure |
| College: |
Faculty of Science and Engineering |