Hybrid manufacturing of aluminium parts combining additive and conventional technologies—mechanical and thermal properties

• Main Author: Silva, Eva C.
• Publication Date: 2022
• Other Authors: Candiango, Josué A., Rodrigues, Sérgio José Ferreira, Sampaio, Álvaro M., Pontes, A. J.
• Format: Article
• Language: eng
• Source: Repositórios Científicos de Acesso Aberto de Portugal (RCAAP)
• Download full: https://hdl.handle.net/1822/79814
• topic: hybrid manufacturing; additive manufacturing; powder bed fusion; AlSi10Mg; aluminium; mechanical properties; thermal properties; Engenharia e Tecnologia::Engenharia dos Materiais; Science & Technology

Metal additive-manufacturing technologies enable the production of complex geometries. However, high manufacturing costs hinder these technologies being employed in some industries. In this sense, a hybrid strategy is presented in this paper, to achieve the best of additive and subtractive technologies, offering economic advantages. AlSi10Mg aluminium powder was deposited on AW-6082 pre-machined substrates and mechanical and thermal properties of these specimens were evaluated considering the application of a stress relief heat treatment. The results were especially good in the compressive mechanical properties and in the thermal properties: compressive properties were improved by up to 27%, and the specific heat capacity and coefficient of thermal expansion were reduced by up to 38%, compared to additively manufactured AlSi10Mg. Therefore, hybrid manufacturing can be a profitable solution (i) in thermal management applications, (ii) when compressive loads are presented, or (iii) to repair damaged parts, providing a circular economy, as presented in a case study of this paper.