Elucidating the effects of metal transfer modes and investigating the material properties in wire-arc additive manufacturing (WAAM)

Studies have shown the influence of WAAM process parameters on mechanical properties, bead formation, dimensional accuracy, and microstructure. However, metal transfer modes and their interactions with input variables have not been investigated thoroughly. Therefore, short/spray, pulse and double pulse modes were investigated in this study at different current levels. Bead-on-plate trials were conducted by depositing ER70S-6 wire to investigate bead morphology, dilution, microstructure, and hardness. The study was supported by a detailed statistical approach, including analysis of variance (ANOVA) and regression analysis. Similarly, the combined effects of hatch distance and current were studied on bead formation in multi-layer deposits. Moreover, a thin wall and a cubic structure were deposited to realize the WAAM capability for larger depositions. The microstructures of thin wall and cubic structure were analyzed using optical microscopy (OM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The study concludes that metal transfer modes at various currents significantly influence bead geometry, microstructure and hardness. The microstructure of bead-on-plate trials show fine lamellar structure at low current in all modes. Higher current results in coarse grains with a polygonal and columnar morphology. The hardness shows a decreasing trend as the current increases. The combined effects of current and hatch distance alter bead morphology; however, an optimized combination yields smoother surfaces. The microstructure of thin wall showed a slight anisotropy along the building direction. The presence of small pores was witnessed from OM and SEM images. Similarly, the cubic structure showed a more homogeneous microstructure with much lower porosity. The hardness profile of the thin wall exhibited small fluctuations along the building direction, while that of the cubic structure was more uniform.