Tensile Mechanical Properties of Micro-Selective Laser Melted 316L Stainless Steel
ZHANG Nan1,2, ZHANG Haiwu2, WANG Miaohui1,2()
1 China Machinery Institute of Advanced Materials Co. Ltd., Zhengzhou 450001, China 2 China Academy of Mechanical Science and Technology Group Co. Ltd., Beijing 100044, China
Cite this article:
ZHANG Nan, ZHANG Haiwu, WANG Miaohui. Tensile Mechanical Properties of Micro-Selective Laser Melted 316L Stainless Steel. Acta Metall Sin, 2024, 60(2): 211-219.
Compared with selective laser melting (SLM), the micro-SLM (M-SLM) technology offers the advantages of small spot diameter (< 20 μm), high forming precision (20-50 μm), and surface roughness (Ra) of up 1 μm, which implies that the M-SLM technology provides great potential for promotion and application in communication electronics, biomedical, and other fields in the future. In this work, 316L stainless steel was prepared using M-SLM, and its tensile properties and fracture behavior were studied. The microstructures of transverse and longitudinal tensile specimens were also investigated. In addition, the fracture morphology was characterized and analyzed, and the grain orientation and grain-boundary-characteristic distribution in the near-section plastic-deformation zone were further analyzed using electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD). The results showed that the 316L stainless steel prepared by M-SLM had a cellular structure with a size of 100-300 nm inside the grains. The tensile fracture was dimple-shaped, and the average dimple diameter was 80-500 nm, which allowed the transverse average tensile strength of the 316L stainless steel to reach 692.1 MPa, the longitudinal average elongation after fracture was 54.6%, which were obviously better than that of the 316L stainless steel prepared using traditional SLM. The appearance of austenite Σ3 twin boundaries in the stretching process of the 316L stainless steel prepared by M-SLM was related to the grain orientation, which could more likely appear in grains with an orientation close to <111>. Further analysis indicated that the appearance of Σ3 grain boundaries blocked the connectivity of the special grain-boundary network. Statistical analysis of the coherent Σ3 (Σ3c) and incoherent Σ3 (Σ3ic) grain boundaries using the EBSD-based rectangular-section method revealed that the amount percentages of Σ3c and Σ3ic in the near-fracture region of the 316L transverse tensile specimen were approximately 43% and 57%, respectively. Meanwhile, the amount percentage of Σ3c in the same region of the 316L longitudinal tensile specimen increased to approximately 70%. The increase in the coherent Σ3c twin boundary reduced the total grain-boundary energy, which explained why the longitudinal tensile strength of the 316L stainless steel prepared by M-SLM was generally lower than the transverse tensile strength.
Fund: National Natural Science Foundation of China(51975240);Beijing Natural Science Foundation(2222093);Technical Development Foundation of China Academy of Machinery Science and Technology Group Co. Ltd(812201Q9)
Corresponding Authors:
WANG Miaohui, professor, Tel: (010)60603546, E-mail: wangmh0103@163.com
Fig.1 Schematic of tensile sample using micro-selective laser melting (M-SLM) (unit: mm)
Fig.2 SEM image of 316L stainless steel powders
Fig.3 XRD spectrum of M-SLMed 316L stainless steel
Fig.4 SEM images of M-SLMed transverse direction (a-c) and longitudinal direction (d-f) 316L stainless steel specimens with different magnifications
Fig.5 Tensile engineering stress-strain curves of 316L stainless steel fabricated by M-SLM
Direction
Rm / MPa
δ / %
UT / (J·cm-3)
Transverse
692.1
32.0
210.6
Longitudinal
642.3
54.6
331.9
Table 1 Tensile properties of M-SLMed 316L stainless steel with different building directions
Fig.6 Comparisons of tensile properties of M-SLMed 316L stainless steel and fabricated by traditional SLM
Fig.7 Low (a, c) and high (b, d) magnified SEM images showing the tensile fracture surfaces of transverse direction (a, b) and longitudinal direction (c, d) M-SLMed 316L stainless steel samples (Arrows in Fig.7c show the dimples formed by defects such as pores or keyholes)
Fig.8 EBSD analyses of microstructures in tensile fracture zone of 316L stainless steel transverse (a-c) and longitudinal (d-f) specimens prepared by M-SLM
Fig.9 Twin grains standard orientation triangular map in tensile fracture zone of 316L stainless steel longitudinal specimen prepared by M-SLM
Fig.10 Schematic of Σ3 grain boundary determination on the circle area in Fig.8b using micro rectangular section method ( N1 and N2 represent normal directions adjacent to grain boundaries of rectangle 1 and rectangle 2, respectively)
No.
φ / (o)
Type
No.
φ / (o)
Type
8b-1
+4
IC
8e-1
+8
IC
8b-2
-2
C
8e-2
-1
C
8b-3
+6
IC
8e-3
-2
C
8b-4
+2
C
8e-4
0
C
8b-5
0
C
8e-5
-2
C
8b-6
-6
IC
8e-6
+4
IC
8b-7
+4
IC
8e-7
-3
C
8b-8
-1
C
8e-8
+3
C
8b-9
+7
IC
8e-9
-9
IC
8b-10
-3
C
8e-10
-2
C
8b-11
-5
IC
8e-11
-7
IC
8b-12
+3
C
8e-12
-2
C
8b-13
-7
IC
8e-13
+1
C
8b-14
+2
C
8e-14
-4
IC
8b-15
-6
IC
8e-15
+7
IC
8b-16
-3
C
8e-16
+1
C
8b-17
+9
IC
8e-17
-2
C
8b-18
-6
IC
8e-18
+5
IC
8b-19
+3
C
8e-19
+1
C
8b-20
+4
IC
8e-20
-2
C
8b-21
+1
C
8e-21
-3
C
8b-22
-5
IC
8e-22
+5
IC
8b-23
+6
IC
8e-23
+1
C
8b-24
-4
IC
8e-24
0
C
8b-25
-1
C
8e-25
-1
C
8b-26
0
C
8e-26
+2
C
8b-27
+7
IC
8e-27
-2
C
8b-28
-5
IC
8e-28
+3
C
8b-29
-6
IC
8e-29
+1
C
8b-30
-2
C
8e-30
+4
IC
Table 2 Σ3 grain boundary analysis results in Figs.8b and e
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