Development of an Alternative Alloying Concept for Additive Manufacturing Using PVD Coating

Abstract

New alloys are needed to adapt the material properties and to improve the weldability of arc-based additive manufacturing processes. The classic development of welding filler materials is time-consuming and cost-intensive. For this reason, an alternative alloy concept is investigated and qualified here. This is based on the thin-film coating of welding filler materials by means of PVD coating. An HSLA steel DIN EN ISO 14341-A G 50 7 M21 is used as the base material. This is alloyed with the elements Al, Cr, Nb, Ni and Ti by means of PVD thin-film coating. This procedure represents an alternative alloy concept. In the scope of the qualification, the influence of the process and material properties is investigated, and the alternative alloying concept is compared with the classical alloying concept of secondary metallurgy. The investigations have shown that the thin film coating on the surface of the welding filler metal affects the process properties in the form of a changed arc length. Furthermore, the mechanical properties and the effect on the microstructure morphology were investigated. These were compared in the same chemical composition with a Mn4Ni2CrMo produced by secondary metallurgy. The results are in agreement with regard to the mechanical properties and the effect on the microstructure morphology.