Gao, S., Chen, P., Low, J. F., & Chew, Y. (2026). Dilution-induced compositional transformation and mechanical degradation in multi-material directed energy deposition. Materials Research Letters, 1–9. https://doi.org/10.1080/21663831.2025.2611732
Abstract:
Multi-material additive manufacturing enables the integration of dissimilar materials to create heterostructured materials with multifunctional properties. In this work, strong maraging steel and ductile medium-entropy alloy were alternately deposited using directed energy deposition (DED) with a 2000 W infrared fiber laser featuring top-hat energy distribution, aiming at combining high strength and ductility. However, despite defect-free interfaces, the resulting layered structures exhibited lower strength and hardness than both base alloys. Extensive elemental mixing from melt pool dilution resulted in unintended in-situ alloying, phase suppression, and mechanical degradation. This work highlights the importance of evaluating dilution-driven compositional shifts in multi-material DED design.
License type:
Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0)
Funding Info:
This research / project is supported by the A*STAR - Career Development Fund
Grant Reference no. : C210812047