Optimization of Coefficient of Friction for Direct Metal Laser Sintered Inconel 718

Direct metal laser sintering is one of the rapid prototyping techniques, which has the ability to fabricate the components with a wide range of materials and with varying geometries. With this technique, the Inconel 718 material was fabricated in three different build orientations (horizontal, vertical, and angular). Further, the fabricated samples subjected to a heat treatment process as per the standards. Samples from the fabricated material were analyzed through the X-ray diffraction technique and scanning electron microscope analysis. Dry sliding wear test was conducted with Taguchi's orthogonal design, and the coefficient of friction was considered as the response. Best parameter combination to obtain the minimum coefficient of friction was identified with the main effect plot. The significant parameter which affects the response was identified through the analysis of variance.