Skip to main content
U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Laser melting modes in metal powder bed fusion additive manufacturing

Journal Article · · Reviews of Modern Physics
In laser powder bed fusion additive manufacturing of metals, extreme thermal conditions create many highly dynamic physical phenomena such as vaporization and recoil, Marangoni convection, and protrusion and keyhole instability. Collectively however, the full set of phenomena is too complicated for practical applications and, in reality, the melting modes are used as a guideline for printing. With increasing local material temperature beyond the boiling point, the mode can change from conduction to keyhole. These mode designations ignore laser-matter interaction details but in many cases are adequate to determine the approximate microstructures and hence the properties of the build. To date, no consistent, common, and coherent definitions have been agreed upon because of historic limitations in melt pool and vapor depression morphology measurements. Here, we distinguish process-based definitions of different melting modes from those based on postmortem evidence. The latter are mainly derived from the transverse cross-sections of the fusion zone, whereas the former come directly from time-resolved x-ray imaging of melt pool and vapor depression morphologies. These process-based definitions are more strict and physically sound, and they offer new guidelines for laser additive manufacturing practices and create new research directions. Further, we highlight the significance of the keyhole, which substantially enhances the laser energy absorption by the melt pool. Recent studies strongly suggest that stable-keyhole laser melting enables efficient, sustainable, and robust additive manufacturing. The realization of this scenario demands the development of multiphysics models, signal translations from morphology to other feasible signals, and in-process metrology across platforms and scales.
Research Organization:
Argonne National Laboratory (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES)
Grant/Contract Number:
AC02-06CH11357
OSTI ID:
2404973
Journal Information:
Reviews of Modern Physics, Journal Name: Reviews of Modern Physics Journal Issue: 4 Vol. 94; ISSN 0034-6861
Publisher:
American Physical Society (APS)Copyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

References (199)

Energy Coupling Mechanisms and Scaling Behavior Associated with Laser Powder Bed Fusion Additive Manufacturing journal April 2019
Laser‐Induced Keyhole Defect Dynamics during Metal Additive Manufacturing journal August 2019
Precise Measurements of Thermophysical Properties of Liquid Ti–6Al–4V (Ti64) Alloy On Board the International Space Station journal April 2020
Laser and electron-beam powder-bed additive manufacturing of metallic implants: A review on processes, materials and designs: LASER AND ELECTRON-BEAM ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING OF METALLIC IMPLANTS journal October 2015
The Effect of Rapid Solidification Velocity on the Microstructure of Ag-Cu Alloys journal January 1984
Free surface flow and heat transfer in conduction mode laser welding journal December 1988
Topology optimization considering overhang constraints: Eliminating sacrificial support material in additive manufacturing through design journal September 2016
Costs, benefits, and adoption of additive manufacturing: a supply chain perspective journal November 2015
Uncertainty quantification and management in additive manufacturing: current status, needs, and opportunities journal July 2017
Exploring the fabrication limits of thin-wall structures in a laser powder bed fusion process journal August 2020
Modeling of humps formation during deep-penetration laser welding journal May 2010
Laser-induced phase explosion: new physical problems when a condensed phase approaches the thermodynamic critical temperature journal December 1999
The role of electron–phonon coupling in femtosecond laser damage of metals journal December 1999
Machine learning for metal additive manufacturing: predicting temperature and melt pool fluid dynamics using physics-informed neural networks journal January 2021
Modeling of laser keyhole welding: Part I. mathematical modeling, numerical methodology, role of recoil pressure, multiple reflections, and free surface evolution journal June 2002
An Experimental Investigation into Additive Manufacturing-Induced Residual Stresses in 316L Stainless Steel journal September 2014
Design and Tailoring of Alloys for Additive Manufacturing journal October 2020
Metal Additive Manufacturing: A Review journal April 2014
Influence of Powder Characteristics on Formation of Porosity in Additive Manufacturing of Ti-6Al-4V Components journal June 2017
Metrology Needs for Metal Additive Manufacturing Powders journal January 2015
Evaluating the Effect of Processing Parameters on Porosity in Electron Beam Melted Ti-6Al-4V via Synchrotron X-ray Microtomography journal January 2016
Synchrotron-Based X-ray Microtomography Characterization of the Effect of Processing Variables on Porosity Formation in Laser Power-Bed Additive Manufacturing of Ti-6Al-4V journal January 2017
Selective Laser Melting of Pure Copper journal December 2017
In Situ Measurements of Melt-Pool Length and Cooling Rate During 3D Builds of the Metal AM-Bench Artifacts journal February 2020
Theory of microstructural development during rapid solidification journal May 1986
Diagrams for laser materials processing journal July 1992
Progress in Additive Manufacturing and Rapid Prototyping journal January 1998
Understanding thermal behavior in the LENS process journal June 1999
Practical considerations and capabilities for laser assisted direct metal deposition journal August 2000
Epitaxial laser metal forming: analysis of microstructure formation journal November 1999
A pragmatic model for selective laser melting with evaporation journal December 2009
A study of the microstructural evolution during selective laser melting of Ti–6Al–4V journal May 2010
Fine-structured aluminium products with controllable texture by selective laser melting of pre-alloyed AlSi10Mg powder journal March 2013
Laser powder-bed fusion additive manufacturing: Physics of complex melt flow and formation mechanisms of pores, spatter, and denudation zones journal April 2016
Additive manufacturing of metals journal September 2016
Keyhole formation and thermal fluid flow-induced porosity during laser fusion welding in titanium alloys: Experimental and modelling journal March 2017
Microstructure and yield strength of SLM-fabricated CM247LC Ni-Superalloy journal April 2017
Crystal growth during keyhole mode laser welding journal July 2017
Fluid and particle dynamics in laser powder bed fusion journal January 2018
Transient dynamics of powder spattering in laser powder bed fusion additive manufacturing process revealed by in-situ high-speed high-energy x-ray imaging journal June 2018
The effect of powder oxidation on defect formation in laser additive manufacturing journal March 2019
Solidification-driven orientation gradients in additively manufactured stainless steel journal January 2020
New insights on cellular structures strengthening mechanisms and thermal stability of an austenitic stainless steel fabricated by laser powder-bed-fusion journal January 2021
Onset of periodic oscillations as a precursor of a transition to pore-generating turbulence in laser melting journal December 2021
Reducing porosity in AlSi10Mg parts processed by selective laser melting journal October 2014
Analysis of defect generation in Ti–6Al–4V parts made using powder bed fusion additive manufacturing processes journal October 2014
Fabrication of smart parts using powder bed fusion additive manufacturing technology journal April 2016
Prediction of lack-of-fusion porosity for powder bed fusion journal March 2017
Acoustic emission for in situ quality monitoring in additive manufacturing using spectral convolutional neural networks journal May 2018
Additive manufacturing of Inconel 718—Copper alloy bimetallic structure using laser engineered net shaping (LENS™) journal May 2018
Melt pool temperature and cooling rates in laser powder bed fusion journal August 2018
Evolution of 316L stainless steel feedstock due to laser powder bed fusion process journal January 2019
Using machine learning to identify in-situ melt pool signatures indicative of flaw formation in a laser powder bed fusion additive manufacturing process journal January 2019
In-Process monitoring of porosity during laser additive manufacturing process journal August 2019
Melt pool geometry and morphology variability for the Inconel 718 alloy in a laser powder bed fusion additive manufacturing process journal October 2019
Keyhole-induced porosities in Laser-based Powder Bed Fusion (L-PBF) of Ti6Al4V: High-fidelity modelling and experimental validation journal December 2019
Simulation of melt pool behaviour during additive manufacturing: Underlying physics and progress journal January 2020
Influence of particle morphology and size distribution on the powder flowability and laser powder bed fusion manufacturability of Ti-6Al-4V alloy journal January 2020
Excellent strength-ductility synergy in metastable high entropy alloy by laser powder bed additive manufacturing journal March 2020
Detecting keyhole pore defects and monitoring process signatures during laser powder bed fusion: A correlation between in situ pyrometry and ex situ X-ray radiography journal October 2020
Revealing transient powder-gas interaction in laser powder bed fusion process through multi-physics modeling and high-speed synchrotron x-ray imaging journal October 2020
Hybrid directed energy deposition for fabricating metal structures with embedded sensors journal October 2020
Invited Review Article: Review of the formation and impact of flaws in powder bed fusion additive manufacturing journal December 2020
Data-driven characterization of thermal models for powder-bed-fusion additive manufacturing journal December 2020
Defect structure process maps for laser powder bed fusion additive manufacturing journal December 2020
A critical insight into lack-of-fusion pore structures in additively manufactured stainless steel journal February 2021
Predictive analytical modelling and experimental validation of processing maps in additive manufacturing of nitinol alloys journal February 2021
Layer-wise engineering of grain orientation (LEGO) in laser powder bed fusion of stainless steel 316L journal February 2021
Laser-based powder bed fusion additive manufacturing of pure copper journal June 2021
Quantitative study on the dynamics of melt pool and keyhole and their controlling factors in metal laser melting journal June 2022
In situ absorptivity measurements of metallic powders during laser powder-bed fusion additive manufacturing journal December 2017
In-situ Synchrotron imaging of keyhole mode multi-layer laser powder bed fusion additive manufacturing journal September 2020
Enhanced mechanical performance via laser induced nanostructure formation in an additively manufactured lightweight aluminum alloy journal March 2021
The causal relationship between melt pool geometry and energy absorption measured in real time during laser-based manufacturing journal June 2021
Topological design and additive manufacturing of porous metals for bone scaffolds and orthopaedic implants: A review journal March 2016
Geometrical metrology for metal additive manufacturing journal January 2019
A conservative level set method on unstructured meshes for modeling multiphase thermo-fluid flow in additive manufacturing processes journal December 2020
Defects and anomalies in powder bed fusion metal additive manufacturing journal April 2022
Resolution and geometric limitations in laser powder bed fusion additively manufactured GRCop-84 structures for a lower hybrid current drive launcher journal December 2021
Direct observation of pore formation mechanisms during LPBF additive manufacturing process and high energy density laser welding journal June 2020
Balling phenomena during direct laser sintering of multi-component Cu-based metal powder journal April 2007
Selective laser melting of Ti6Al4V alloy for biomedical applications: Temperature monitoring and microstructural evolution journal January 2014
In situ absorption synchrotron measurements, predictive modeling, microstructural analysis, and scanning probe measurements of laser melted Ti-6Al-4V single tracks for additive manufacturing applications journal April 2022
Selective laser melting of iron-based powder journal June 2004
Thermal process maps for predicting solidification microstructure in laser fabrication of thin-wall structures journal September 2006
Defect generation and propagation mechanism during additive manufacturing by selective beam melting journal November 2014
Observation of keyhole-mode laser melting in laser powder-bed fusion additive manufacturing journal December 2014
Formation and reduction of hydrogen porosity during selective laser melting of AlSi10Mg journal July 2015
On the formation of AlSi10Mg single tracks and layers in selective laser melting: Microstructure and nano-mechanical properties journal April 2016
Effect of real-time cooling rate on microstructure in Laser Additive Manufacturing journal May 2016
Influence of keyhole and conduction mode melting for top-hat shaped beam profiles in laser powder bed fusion journal April 2020
Metal additive manufacturing in the commercial aviation industry: A review journal October 2019
Helium bubble nucleation in Laser Powder Bed Fusion processed 304L stainless steel journal December 2020
Finite Element Simulation of Selective Laser Melting process considering Optical Penetration Depth of laser in powder bed journal January 2016
Formation and control of martensite in Ti-6Al-4V alloy produced by selective laser melting journal October 2016
On the limitations of Volumetric Energy Density as a design parameter for Selective Laser Melting journal January 2017
Selective laser melting of Al7050 powder: Melting mode transition and comparison of the characteristics between the keyhole and conduction mode journal December 2017
In-situ characterization of laser-powder interaction and cooling rates through high-speed imaging of powder bed fusion additive manufacturing journal December 2017
Additive manufacturing of Ti6Al4V alloy: A review journal February 2019
SLM lattice structures: Properties, performance, applications and challenges journal December 2019
A review of critical repeatability and reproducibility issues in powder bed fusion journal January 2020
The effect of manufacturing defects on the fatigue life of selective laser melted Ti-6Al-4V structures journal July 2020
Grain structure evolution in transition-mode melting in direct energy deposition journal September 2020
Controlling grain nucleation and morphology by laser beam shaping in metal additive manufacturing journal October 2020
Operando X-ray diffraction during laser 3D printing journal April 2020
Porosity formation mechanisms and fatigue response in Al-Si-Mg alloys made by selective laser melting journal January 2018
Keyhole mode induced simultaneous improvement in strength and ductility of Sc modified Al–Mn alloy manufactured by selective laser melting journal April 2021
Ultrafast dynamics of laser-metal interactions in additive manufacturing alloys captured by in situ X-ray imaging journal March 2019
Melting modes in laser powder bed fusion journal March 2020
Interaction time and beam diameter effects on the conduction mode limit journal June 2012
Modeling the interaction of laser radiation with powder bed at selective laser melting journal January 2010
High Power Selective Laser Melting (HP SLM) of Aluminum Parts journal January 2011
Temperature Profile and Imaging Analysis of Laser Additive Manufacturing of Stainless Steel journal January 2013
Additive manufacturing of metallic components – Process, structure and properties journal March 2018
Defects in additive manufactured metals and their effect on fatigue performance: A state-of-the-art review journal April 2021
Emerging metallic systems for additive manufacturing: In-situ alloying and multi-metal processing in laser powder bed fusion journal June 2021
Simultaneous high-speed x-ray transmission imaging and absolute dynamic absorptance measurements during high-power laser-metal processing journal January 2020
Effect of Zirconium addition on crack, microstructure and mechanical behavior of selective laser melted Al-Cu-Mg alloy journal June 2017
Excellent mechanical and corrosion properties of austenitic stainless steel with a unique crystallographic lamellar microstructure via selective laser melting journal January 2019
Definition of brightness temperature and restoration of true temperature in laser cladding using infrared camera journal April 2013
Some Interesting Properties of Metals Confined in Time and Nanometer Space of Different Shapes journal April 2001
Laser Photothermal Melting and Fragmentation of Gold Nanorods: Energy and Laser Pulse-Width Dependence journal March 1999
Phase-contrast imaging using polychromatic hard X-rays journal November 1996
3D printing of high-strength aluminium alloys journal September 2017
Additively manufactured hierarchical stainless steels with high strength and ductility journal October 2017
Ultrafast X-ray study of dense-liquid-jet flow dynamics using structure-tracking velocimetry journal January 2008
In situ X-ray imaging of defect and molten pool dynamics in laser additive manufacturing journal April 2018
Dynamics of pore formation during laser powder bed fusion additive manufacturing journal April 2019
Pore elimination mechanisms during 3D printing of metals journal July 2019
Grain structure control during metal 3D printing by high-intensity ultrasound journal January 2020
Metal 3D printing as a disruptive technology for superalloys journal May 2020
Universal scaling laws of keyhole stability and porosity in 3D printing of metals journal April 2021
Keyhole fluctuation and pore formation mechanisms during laser powder bed fusion additive manufacturing journal March 2022
The interplay between vapour, liquid, and solid phases in laser powder bed fusion journal May 2022
Metallurgy, mechanistic models and machine learning in metal printing journal October 2020
Real-time monitoring of laser powder bed fusion process using high-speed X-ray imaging and diffraction journal June 2017
Metal vapor micro-jet controls material redistribution in laser powder bed fusion additive manufacturing journal June 2017
In situ investigation of phase transformations in Ti-6Al-4V under additive manufacturing conditions combining laser melting and high-speed micro-X-ray diffraction journal November 2017
In-situ high-speed X-ray imaging of piezo-driven directed energy deposition additive manufacturing journal January 2019
Subsurface Cooling Rates and Microstructural Response during Laser Based Metal Additive Manufacturing journal February 2020
A critical look at the prediction of the temperature field around a laser-induced melt pool on metallic substrates journal June 2021
Liquid metals: fundamentals and applications in chemistry journal January 2018
Thermocapillary actuation by optimized resistor pattern: bubbles and droplets displacing, switching and trapping journal January 2010
Macroporosity free aluminum alloy weldments through numerical simulation of keyhole mode laser welding journal June 2003
The flow of heat and the motion of the weld pool in penetration welding with a laser journal May 1985
Keyhole modeling during laser welding journal May 2000
Laser powder bed fusion additive manufacturing of metals; physics, computational, and materials challenges journal December 2015
An instrument for in situ time-resolved X-ray imaging and diffraction of laser powder bed fusion additive manufacturing processes journal May 2018
A review on measurement science needs for real-time control of additive manufacturing metal powder bed fusion processes journal February 2016
Evaluation of pore re-opening after HIP in LPBF Ti–6Al–4V journal May 2021
The metallurgy and processing science of metal additive manufacturing journal March 2016
Is the energy density a reliable parameter for materials synthesis by selective laser melting? journal March 2017
Analyzing the effects of powder and post-processing on porosity and properties of electron beam melted Ti-6Al-4V journal June 2017
Towards a self-consistent model of the keyhole in penetration laser beam welding journal March 1993
A model of deep penetration laser welding based on calculation of the keyhole profile journal September 1994
The role of recoil pressure in energy balance during laser materials processing journal September 1997
Mechanism of keyhole formation and stability in stationary laser welding journal June 2002
Experimental study of the dynamical coupling between the induced vapour plume and the melt pool for Nd–Yag CW laser welding journal January 2006
Implementation of real-time multiple reflection and Fresnel absorption of laser beam in keyhole journal December 2006
Heat transfer and fluid flow during keyhole mode laser welding of tantalum, Ti–6Al–4V, 304L stainless steel and vanadium journal August 2007
Experimental determination of temperature threshold for melt surface deformation during laser interaction on iron at atmospheric pressure journal October 2011
Investigation of keyhole plume and molten pool based on a three-dimensional dynamic model with sharp interface formulation journal January 2013
Axial force radiometer for primary standard laser power measurements using photon momentum journal January 2021
Time-Resolved Absorptance and Melt Pool Dynamics during Intense Laser Irradiation of a Metal journal October 2018
Effect of Laser-Matter Interaction on Molten Pool Flow and Keyhole Dynamics journal June 2019
Energy-Coupling Mechanisms Revealed through Simultaneous Keyhole Depth and Absorptance Measurements during Laser-Metal Processing journal June 2020
Evaporation Model for Keyhole Dynamics During Additive Manufacturing of Metal journal December 2020
Ultrafast X-Ray Phase-Contrast Imaging of the Initial Coalescence Phase of Two Water Droplets journal March 2008
Short-Pulse Laser Ablation of Solids: From Phase Explosion to Fragmentation journal November 2003
Bulk-Explosion-Induced Metal Spattering During Laser Processing journal June 2019
Simultaneous X-ray diffraction and phase-contrast imaging for investigating material deformation mechanisms during high-rate loading journal January 2015
Ultrafast X-ray imaging of laser–metal additive manufacturing processes journal August 2018
Balling processes during selective laser treatment of powders journal April 2004
Binding mechanisms in selective laser sintering and selective laser melting journal February 2005
Additive manufacturing: rapid prototyping comes of age journal June 2012
Deep Learning for In Situ and Real-Time Quality Monitoring in Additive Manufacturing Using Acoustic Emission journal September 2019
Blockchain in Additive Manufacturing and its Impact on Supply Chains journal October 2019
Temperature-dependent 780-nm laser absorption by engineering grade aluminum, titanium, and steel alloy surfaces journal July 2014
In situ characterization of laser-generated melt pools using synchronized ultrasound and high-speed X-ray imaging journal October 2021
Multiprocess 3D printing for increasing component functionality journal September 2016
Keyhole threshold and morphology in laser melting revealed by ultrahigh-speed x-ray imaging journal February 2019
Controlling interdependent meso-nanosecond dynamics and defect generation in metal 3D printing journal May 2020
Closing the science gap in 3D metal printing journal May 2020
Critical instability at moving keyhole tip generates porosity in laser melting journal November 2020
Material-structure-performance integrated laser-metal additive manufacturing journal May 2021
Multiscale Modeling of Powder Bed–Based Additive Manufacturing journal July 2016
Operando monitoring microstructures and defects in laser fusion additive manufacturing of metals journal June 2022
Calculation of laser absorption by metal powders in additive manufacturing journal January 2015
Time-resolved analysis of cavitation induced by CW lasers in absorbing liquids journal January 2010
Portable, high-accuracy, non-absorbing laser power measurement at kilowatt levels by means of radiation pressure journal February 2017
X-ray phase contrast observation of solidification and hot crack propagation in laser spot welding of aluminum alloy journal January 2018
Analysis and possible estimation of keyhole depths evolution, using laser operating parameters and material properties journal August 2018
Directed light fabrication
  • Lewis, Gary K.; Nemec, Ron; Milewski, John
  • ICALEO® ‘94: Proceedings of the Laser Materials Processing Conference, International Congress on Applications of Lasers & Electro-Optics https://doi.org/10.2351/1.5058786
conference January 1994
Laser engineered net shaping (LENS™): A tool for direct fabrication of metal parts conference January 1998
Development of a time resolved energy absorption measurement technique for laser beam spot welds conference January 2008
Dynamics of keyhole and molten pool in laser welding journal December 1998
Process Mapping for Qualification Across Multiple Direct Metal Additive Manufacturing Processes null January 2013
An Experimental Approach for the Direct Measurement of Temperatures in the Vicinity of the Keyhole Front Wall during Deep-Penetration Laser Welding journal June 2020
Enabling New Science Mission Capabilities with Additive Manufacturing Technologies journal March 2021

Similar Records

Keyhole threshold and morphology in laser melting revealed by ultrahigh-speed x-ray imaging
Journal Article · Wed Feb 20 19:00:00 EST 2019 · Science · OSTI ID:1547721

Observation of keyhole-mode laser melting in laser powder-bed fusion additive manufacturing
Journal Article · Tue Jun 24 20:00:00 EDT 2014 · Journal of Materials Processing Technology · OSTI ID:1502044