Role of customized scan strategies and dwell time on microstructure and properties of additively manufactured 316L stainless steel

Direct energy deposition (DED)-based additive manufacturing facilitates fabrication of medium-to-large functional parts. This study assesses the role of varying scan strategies and dwell time between each layer to control the cooling rate of 316L stainless steel produced by the laser-engineered net shaping-DED method. Customized print patterns were designed, keeping other optimized print parameters constant to obtain printed parts with better dimensional tolerance. The parts, which were >99% dense, were fabricated in a controlled argon environment. A heterogeneous microstructure consisting of a cellular columnar and equiaxed substructure was obtained. Two-dimensional X-ray diffraction revealed the presence of a single-phase gamma-austenitic FCC phase. A refined microstructure with less elemental segregation was noticed with an increase in dwell time between the print layers. Internal defect analysis using X-ray micro-computed tomography revealed low lack-of-fusion voids along the build direction without any micro-cracks, which is attributed to higher cooling rates between subsequent print layers. As demonstrated in a mechanical performance evaluation of tensile and micro-hardness properties, better performance can be achieved by controlling the cooling rate and customizing deposition patterns.