High-Quality Spherical Silver Alloy Powder for Laser Powder Bed Fusion Using Plasma Rotating Electrode Process
Abstract
:1. Introduction
2. Materials and Methods
2.1. Materials
2.2. Preparation of Silver Alloy Rod
2.3. PREP Preparation of Silver Alloy Powders
2.4. Preparation of Samples for Laser Powder Bed Fusion
2.5. Measurement of Microstructure and Physical Property
3. Results and Discussion
3.1. Continuous Casting of Silver Alloy Rods
3.1.1. Microstructure of Silver Alloy Rods
3.1.2. Vickers Hardness of Silver Alloy Rod
3.2. Physical Properties of Silver Alloy Powders
3.3. Optimisation of LPBF Process
3.3.1. Single-Track Samples
3.3.2. Bulk Samples
3.4. Microstructure and Defects
3.5. Thermal Conductivity and Vickers Hardness
4. Conclusions
- The hardness of the silver alloy electrode rod was effectively enhanced through the continuous casting process. The fine dendrites were induced due to the outer edge of the rods undergoing rapid cooling using the water-cooled crystalliser. The hardness was enhanced by the reinforcement of these fine crystals, resulting in a 30.30% increase in hardness compared to S800 Ag prepared by traditional mould casting.
- The S800 Ag electrode rod with enhanced hardness enabled stable rotation with the speed up to 25,000–37,000 rpm. The silver alloy powders prepared by “CC + PREP”, which has a small particle size (15–60 μm), satisfy the requirements for LPBF fabrication. Furthermore, S800 Ag powder showed a 5.56% increase in average sphericity (0.98) and a 36.28% increase in sphericity ratio (97.67%) compared to the GA silver alloy powders.
- The LPBF process rapidly cooled the material, resulting in a crystalline reinforcement that provided S800 Ag with a Vickers hardness (271.20 HV) 3.66 times higher than mould casting. The strength was significantly improved, hence facilitating the development of silver alloy components with high strength and complex structures.
Author Contributions
Funding
Data Availability Statement
Conflicts of Interest
References
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Plasma Gas | Rotational Speed (rpm) | DC Current (A) | Feeding Rate (mm/s) |
---|---|---|---|
Ar | 25,000–37,000 | 500–700 | 3.5–4.5 |
Particle Size Distributions | Apparent Density | Tap Density | |
---|---|---|---|
S800 Ag | D10 = 23.08 μm D50 = 34.42 μm D90 = 51.04 μm | 5.92 | 6.20 |
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Li, H.; Zhang, S.; Chen, Q.; Du, Z.; Chen, X.; Chen, X.; Zhou, S.; Mei, S.; Ke, L.; Sun, Q.; et al. High-Quality Spherical Silver Alloy Powder for Laser Powder Bed Fusion Using Plasma Rotating Electrode Process. Micromachines 2024, 15, 396. https://doi.org/10.3390/mi15030396
Li H, Zhang S, Chen Q, Du Z, Chen X, Chen X, Zhou S, Mei S, Ke L, Sun Q, et al. High-Quality Spherical Silver Alloy Powder for Laser Powder Bed Fusion Using Plasma Rotating Electrode Process. Micromachines. 2024; 15(3):396. https://doi.org/10.3390/mi15030396
Chicago/Turabian StyleLi, Hao, Shenghuan Zhang, Qiaoyu Chen, Zhaoyang Du, Xingyu Chen, Xiaodan Chen, Shiyi Zhou, Shuwen Mei, Linda Ke, Qinglei Sun, and et al. 2024. "High-Quality Spherical Silver Alloy Powder for Laser Powder Bed Fusion Using Plasma Rotating Electrode Process" Micromachines 15, no. 3: 396. https://doi.org/10.3390/mi15030396