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Procedia CIRP 00 (2017)
Procedia 000–000
CIRP 74 (2018) 607–610
www.elsevier.com/locate/procedia

10th CIRP
10th CIRPConference
Conference on
on Photonic
Photonic Technologies
Technologies [LANE
[LANE 2018]
2018]

Spatial modulation 28thofCIRP

laser sources
Design for microstructural
Conference, control of additively
May 2018, Nantes, France
manufactured metals
A new methodology to analyze the functional and physical architecture of
existing products
*, T. T.for an assembly oriented , G.product family identification
a, a a
M. J. Matthews Roehling , S. A. Khairallah Gussa, S. Q. Wua, M. F. Crumba, J. D.
a
Roehling, J. T. McKeown
Paul
a StiefLivermore
Lawrence *, Jean-Yves Dantan,
National Laboratory, Alain
7000 East Etienne,
Avenue, Ali Siadat
Livermore 94550 CA, USA

Écoleauthor.
* Corresponding Nationale
Tel.:Supérieure d’Arts etE-mail
+1-925-424-6762. Métiers, Arts etibo@llnl.gov
address: Métiers ParisTech, LCFC EA 4495, 4 Rue Augustin Fresnel, Metz 57078, France

* Corresponding author. Tel.: +33 3 87 37 54 30; E-mail address: paul.stief@ensam.eu

Abstract

Metal powder-bed fusion additive manufacturing (AM), while demonstrating great potential across a diverse application space, still lacks the
Abstract
necessary control to obtain parts that meet strict performance-driven criteria. In this work, we explore spatial laser modulation to enhance the
properties and processability of AM metals. Experiments are carried out with the goals of demonstrating control of the columnar-to-equiaxed
In today’s business environment, the trend towards more product variety and customization is unbroken. Due to this development, the need of
transition, identify methods
agile and reconfigurable to reduce
production surfaceemerged
systems roughness, and extend
to cope processing
with various windows
products for AMfamilies.
and product alloys. Results show
To design andthat beam modulation
optimize production
provides site-specific microstructural control, and these results are interpreted using finite element modeling of the melt pool dynamics and
systems as well as to choose the optimal product matches, product analysis methods are needed. Indeed, most of the known methods aim to
thermal profiles.
analyze a product or one product family on the physical level. Different product families, however, may differ largely in terms of the number and
© 2018
© 2018 The
The Authors.
Authors. Published
Published by
by Elsevier
Elsevier Ltd.
Ltd. This
This is
is an
an open
open access
access article
article under the
the CC
CC BY-NC-ND
BY-NC-ND license
license
nature of components. This fact impedes an efficient comparison and choiceunder
of appropriate product family combinations for the production
(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/)
(https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)
system. A new methodology is proposed to analyze existing products in view of their functional and physical architecture. The aim is to cluster
Peer-review under
Peer-review under responsibility
responsibility of
of the
the Bayerisches
Bayerisches Laserzentrum
Laserzentrum GmbH.
these products in new assembly oriented product families for the optimization of existing assembly lines and the creation of future reconfigurable
assembly systems. Based on Datum Flow Chain, the physical structure of the products is analyzed. Functional subassemblies are identified, and
Keywords: Beam shaping; Additive Manufacturing; Selective Laser Melting; Microstructure; In situ monitoring
a functional analysis is performed. Moreover, a hybrid functional and physical architecture graph (HyFPAG) is the output which depicts the
similarity between product families by providing design support to both, production system planners and product designers. An illustrative
example of a nail-clipper is used to explain the proposed methodology. An industrial case study on two product families of steering columns of
thyssenkrupp Presta France is then carried out to give a first industrial evaluation of the proposed approach.
1. Introduction titanium alloys (largely Ti-6Al-4V). However, AM processing
© 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V.
of these technically relevant alloys does not result in parts that
Peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of the 28th CIRP Design Conference 2018.
Additive manufacturing (AM) technologies such as Laser meet performance-driven criteria for qualification and
Powder Bed Fusion (LPBF) have advanced
Keywords: Assembly; Design method; Family identification to a critical certification in the as-fabricated state. The reasons for this are
juncture where components with geometries that cannot be many-fold: a lack of control of local thermal histories that
obtained through conventional processing routes can be drive microstructure control, a deficiency in predictive
designed and built, but performance is severely limited by a capabilities due to a lack of in situ process monitoring to
1.lack
Introduction
of understanding and control of the parameters that of the product
provide data for range and characteristics
validation, and materialsmanufactured
feedstocks thatand/or
are
influence microstructure and materials properties [1]. Until assembled not suited toin AM
this system. In this
processing. Ascontext, the main
AM continues to challenge
evolve from in
Due tothe the
recently, fast development
arguments favoring AM in the domain
of metals and alloysof modelling and analysis technology
a rapid prototyping is now not only to cope
to rapid with single
manufacturing
communication
have largely been and1)antheongoing
ability totrend
buildofcomplex
digitization
parts and
that products, a limited
applications, productknowledge
a profound range or existing
of both product
the AMfamilies,
process
digitalization,
cannot be achieved manufacturing enterprises are
with conventional facing
casting andimportant
molding but also
itself to be
and theable to analyze
resultant and to
structure compare
across products
relevant to define
length scales
challenges
processes, 2) in reduction
today’s market environments:
of the number of parts ain continuing
a complex new product
(macro- families. It canare
to microstructure) be observed
required to that classical
design existing
an essential,
tendency
assembly,towards
to avoidreduction of productwith
issues associated development
welding and times and
joining, product families
scientifically are regrouped
based uncertaintyinquantification
function of clients
(UQ).or features.
shortened product
3) a reduction lifecycles.
in cost, and 4)In addition, there
a reduction is an increasing
of materials waste. In However,
In orderassembly
to expand oriented
beyond product families
current are hardly
limitation in AM,to find.
it is
demand of customization,
this context, the alloys thatbeing
haveatbeen
the same time in
considered fora metals-
global On the product
necessary to develop family
a new level, products differ
science-based mainlystrategy
AM design in two
competition
based AM have with almost
competitors all over
exclusively the those
been world.developed
This trend,for main characteristics:
in which (i) the and
carefully tailored number of componentslight
simulation-driven and sources
(ii) the
which
standard is manufacturing
inducing the processes,
development suchfrom macro to micro
as conventional steels type
can ofcontrol
components thermal(e.g. history,
mechanical, electrical,a electronical).
providing path toward
markets,
(i.e., 316L results in diminished
stainless lot sizes
steel), aluminum due such
alloys to augmenting
as Al-Cu- Classical methodologies
fabrication of complexconsidering components.mainly single products
Recently, we
product
Mg-Sc-Si, varieties (high-volume
Ni-Cr–based to low-volume
superalloys (Inconelproduction)
718/625), [1].and or solitary, already
demonstrated the use existing product and
of both complex families analyze
elliptical beamsthe for
To cope with this augmenting variety as well as to be able to product structure on a physical level (components level) which
identify possible optimization potentials in the existing
2212-8271 © 2018 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an opencauses difficulties
access article under theregarding
CC BY-NC-ND an efficient
license definition and
production system, it is important to have a precise knowledge
(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/) comparison of different product families. Addressing this
Peer-review under responsibility of the Bayerisches Laserzentrum GmbH.
2212-8271 © 2018 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license
(https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)
2212-8271 © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V.
Peer-review
Peer-review under
under responsibility
responsibility of scientific
of the the Bayerisches Laserzentrum
committee GmbH.
of the 28th CIRP Design Conference 2018.
10.1016/j.procir.2018.08.077
 608 M.J. Matthews et al. / Procedia CIRP 74 (2018) 607–610
2 Author name / Procedia CIRP 00 (2018) 000–000
controlling morphology and microstructure of AM alloys [2,
3]. Similar work on Ti-6Al-4V alloys showed that a complex
shaped beam could be used to affect phase distribution upon
solidification [4]. development of a framework by which new
materials and parts designs can be realized. Full realization of
a tailored heat source approach, illustrated in Figure 1, should
be aimed at delivering understanding and control of the effects
that currently limit the fidelity of LPBF AM: microstructure,
residual stress, micro-roughness, and porosity.
Fig. 1. Conceptual framework for tuning material properties in additive
manufacturing using tailored light sources such as shaped beams.
In this work, beam ellipticity is demonstrated as a potential
means for microstructural control during LPBF. Although
commercial LPBF systems typically use simple Gaussian
intensity profiles, these shapes may not be ideal in terms of
optimal process control. Here we use simple beam shaping
optical elements (e.g., an anamorphic prism pair) that in
principle can be implemented on a full commercial system.
Thus, through engineering of the thermal gradients with such
optics, it may be possible to control equiaxed or columnar
grains at specified locations by modulating beam shape during
a build.
Nomenclature
P laser power [W]
v scan speed [mm/s]
λ wavelength [nm]
Q volumetric energy density [J/mm3]
2. Materials & Methods
Single-track laser melting experiments were completed
using 316L stainless steel powder (Concept Laser) on 316L
stainless steel substrates (McMaster-Carr). Prior to use, the
~27-μm powders were vacuum dried at 623 K and stored in a
desiccator thereafter. The surfaces of the 3.175-mm (1/8-in)
thick substrates were bead blasted. A 50-μm thick powder
layer was manually spread onto each substrate using a glass
microscope slide prior to single powder layer melting.
In the LPBF testbed (Figure 2), the output of a 600 W fiber
laser (JK600 FL, JK Lasers) was first collimated using a 50
mm FL lens and then directed through an anamorphic prism
pair (Thor Labs) to adjust beam ellipticity. The modified
beam was then directed through a 2-5x reducer (Thor Labs)
which controls the beam size to a galvanometer scanner
(Nutfield Technologies), and through the high purity fused
silica window of a 15 x 15 x 15 cm3 vacuum chamber. For
each experiment, the chamber was evacuated using a
turbomolecular pump and back-filled with argon. During
laser melting, the Ar pressure was maintained at 750 Torr.
Volumetric energy density is reported as Q=P/(utw) where P
is laser power, u is scan speed, t is powder layer thickness and
w is 1/e2 laser beam diameter. For elliptical beams, the laser
beam diameter is taken as the geometric average of major and
minor axes.
Details of the ALE3D code and the 316L material
properties used in the simulations are published elsewhere
[5,6]. Briefly, the simulation used the actual particle size
distribution, and random particle packing (40 % density) was
modeled using the ALE3D utility code, ParticlePack [7]. A
laser ray tracing algorithm was used to simulate laser
interaction with the powder bed. The three-dimensional
model was addressed using a hybrid finite element and finite
volume formulation on an unstructured grid. Simulations
were run using each beam shape at Size S for P = 550 W. To
conserve computational time, the scan velocity was set at 1800
mm/s, resulting in an energy density of 61 J/mm3. This
energy density is slightly lower than the minimum value used
in the experiments (80 J/mm3).
Fig. 2. Custom laser powder bed fusion test setup for producing single track
samples in an argon flow and capturing high speed image data of the process.
3. Microstructure
Figure 3 shows scanning electron microscopy of etched
cross-sections for Gaussian, longitudinal elliptical and
transverse elliptical beams, taken transversally. Figure 3
shows that all tracks possess a very narrow region of planar
growth at the fusion boundary, which was the case for all
beam shapes. This region was typically less than 1.5-μm
thick, and quickly transitioned to cellular or dendritic growth
towards the center of the melt pool. Adjacent to the planar
growth region, solute-poor cell/dendrite cores etched more
 M.J. Matthews et al. / Procedia CIRP 74 (2018) 607–610 609
Author name / Procedia CIRP 00 (2018) 000–000 3

readily, indicating pitting corrosion. These pits were not

present prior to etching.

Fig. 3. Microstructure cross-sections as a function of beam shape: (a)

Gaussian, (b) longitudinal elliptical and (c) transverse elliptical. Columnar
grains are narrower than equiaxed grains in substrate, but many times longer
Close-up of fusion boundary shows that not all grains initiate epitaxially.

It was found that independent of beam ellipticity or size,

equiaxed solidification was favored at lower laser powers,
particularly when substrate penetration by the melt was absent
or poor. With increasing power and scan speed, the
concentration of columnar grains generally increases. Of
particular note, the parameter space over which equiaxed or
mixed equiaxed-columnar microstructures are produced was
found to be much larger for the elliptical beam profiles than
for the Gaussian beam profiles. For example, without
changing laser power, scan speed, or beam size, a greater area
fraction of equiaxed grains can be achieved for longitudinal
elliptical profiles for Q = 260 J/mm3 and transverse elliptical
profiles for Q = 200-260 J/mm3. The tendency for elliptical Fig. 4. Top view (a, c) and transversal cross-sectional view (b, d) of simulated
profiles to increase the area fraction of equiaxed grains is melt-track formation by the Gaussian (a, b) and longitudinal elliptical (c, d)
generally observed at low depth-to-width track ratios, when beams, where laser scanning occurs in the positive x-direction. The pseudo-
conduction-mode laser heating of the substrate occurs. In color range corresponds to temperature linearly, where red is 3200 K and blue
is room temperature (298 K). Isothermal contours are shown, where gray =
keyhole mode, this transition is also observed. These results 500 K, red = 1700 K, magenta = 2500 K, and black = 3500 K. The sizes of
confirm that site-specific microstructural control is achievable the velocity vectors scale with magnitude.
by varying beam ellipticity. Furthermore, full builds using
alternate beam shapes have shown that even more complex In order to reduce surface energy, capillary forces pull
microstructures can be achieved yielding novel mechanical liquid metal towards the center of the melt track, smoothing
properties [8]. the track surface and wetting the substrate [6]. In Figure 4,
the temperature gradients can be judged by using the distance
4. Simulations between the central red (~3100 K) and blue regions (~300 K).
For each beam intensity profile, a slight denudation zone (or
Modelling laser-material interactions using LLNL’s bare zone) exists between the melt track and the surrounding
ALE3D code allowed beam shape effects on track macro- and heat-affected particles. Details of the various contributions to
microstructures to be further investigated. During the track denudation is discussed in detail for Gaussian beams
melting simulations, the role of surface tension and vapor elsewhere [9].
recoil on track topography can be observed (Figure 4).
610 M.J. Matthews et al. / Procedia CIRP 74 (2018) 607–610
4 Author name / Procedia CIRP 00 (2018) 000–000
Simulations were performed for a short distance (0.050
cm), such that fluid motion in the melt track surfaces cannot
easily be tied to track discontinuities, which occur over
similar or longer length scales (trough to trough) for the
Gaussian and longitudinal elliptical profiles at P = 550 W and
Q = 80 J/mm3. Nevertheless, melt velocity vectors are shown
on longitudinal cross-sectional views in Figure 4. The shape
of each topological depression mirrored the beam shape used.
However, as can be seen in the figure, the melt flow velocities
for the elliptical beam were far greater than those of the
Gaussian beam. Furthermore, the melt depression was deeper
for the same average energy density. This is related to the
intensity distributions produced by the different beam
profiles: the centerline of tracks melted by the longitudinal
elliptical profile experience heating longer than those melted
by the transverse elliptical profile (not shown).
Conclusion
In this work, we explored spatial laser modulation to enhance
the properties and processability of AM metals. A custom test
bed was developed which can produce single tracks of steel
316L under various conditions. The effects of Gaussian and
elliptical laser intensity profiles on single-track
microstructures were investigated. Beam ellipticity
demonstrated a strong effect on solidification microstructure.
The elliptical intensity profiles produced equiaxed or mixed
equiaxed-columnar grains over a much larger parameter space
than the circular profiles when conduction-mode laser heating
occurred. This indicates that grain morphology can be
tailored by varying beam intensity spatial profile while
maintaining constant laser power and scan speed. With the
ability to tune microstructures locally, site-specific properties
can be directly engineered into additively manufactured parts
opening up larger design flexibility for the technology.
Acknowledgements
This work was performed under the auspices of the U.S.
Department of Energy by Lawrence Livermore National
Laboratory under Contract No. DE-AC52-07NA27344. This
work was funded by the Laboratory Directed Research and
Development Program at LLNL under project tracking code
15-ERD-037 and 18-SI-003.
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