Current research and industrial application of laser powder directed energy deposition

Additive Manufacturing (AM) technologies are recognized as the future of the manufacturing industry thanks to their possibilities in terms of shape design, part functionality, and material efficiency. The use of AM technologies in many industrial sectors is growing, also due to the increasing knowledge regarding the AM processes and the characteristics of the final part. One of the most promising AM techniques is the Directed Energy Deposition (DED) that uses a thermal source to generate a melt pool on a substrate into which metal powder is injected. The potentialities of DED technology are the ability to process large build volumes (> 1000 mm in size), the ability to deliver the material directly into the melt pool, the possibility to repair existing parts, and the opportunity to change the material during the building process, thus creating functionally graded material. In this paper, a review of the industrial applications of Laser Powder Directed Energy Deposition (LP-DED) is presented. Three main applications are identified in repairing, designed material, and production. Despite the enormous advantages of LP-DED, from the literature, it emerges that the most relevant application refers to the repairing process of high-value components.