A numerical modelling approach for prediction of distortion in LPBF processed Inconel 718

Abstract

A finite element modelling approach to determine the effect of dwell time between layers on the deformation of the component during laser powder bed fusion process (LPBF) for Inconel 718 is presented in this paper. The simulation is carried out on a LPBF processed part geometry consisting of a thick and thin section. The thermo-mechanical analysis showed that the deformation of the component decreases with an increase in the dwell time. The longitudinal design of the component show a uniform decrease in the deformation with dwell time whereas the transverse design shows a variation in the results. For a dwell time of 5 sec, the distortion in the thin section reduces by 43.27% whereas increases by 48.7% in the thin section. This shows that different process parameters can be employed for varying geometry to obtain optimal built component. © 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.