Wire plus arc additive manufacturing of stainless steel wall for predicting parametric influences on strength: Experimentation and finite-element analysis approach

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to provide functional insight into the tensile behavior of wire plus arc additively manufactured (WAAM) stainless steel 304 plate simulated using finite-element analysis (FEA) and the Johnson-cook (J-C) model of ductile damage. The plate is manufactured using WAAM and ideal process parameters chosen after multiple attempts. The strength of additively produced specimen (543.6 ± 3 MPa) is significantly higher than that of wrought alloys sample (518.2 ± 6 MPa). The tensile test was successfully simulated using FEA, and the results were anticipated with an error percentage of less than one. The considerable increase in strength is attributed to microstructure variations such as dendritic development and phase changes (presence of residual δ-ferrite) driven by complicated heat cycle. The presence of residual δ-ferrite is also clear through the evaluation of ferrite number as it varied from bottom to top in the range of 5.0–4.8. Hence, this study provides knowledge to the engineering society such that it finds potential application in various sectors.