Study of Various Process Parameters on Bead Penetration and Porosity in Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing (WAAM) of Copper Alloy Cu1897

Copper-based alloys are widely known for their high thermal and electrical conductivity. Although the use of these alloys in powder-based additive manufacturing (AM) shows significant promise, applying this method in wire arc additive manufacturing (WAAM) processes poses various considerable challenges, including porosity, delamination, surface oxidation, etc. The limited research on WAAM of copper alloys, especially Cu1897, highlights the need for a more in-depth investigation. This study addresses the effects of process parameters in pulse cold metal transfer (CMT)-based WAAM of Cu1897, i.e., pulse correction (PC) and arc length correction (ALC), on bead penetration and porosity. The results showed that as PC was increased from -5 to +5, weld bead penetration increased from 2.38 mm to 3.87 mm. To further enhance penetration and reduce the porosity, the ALC was varied from +30% to -30% with a step size of 15%. The results showed that weld bead penetration increased to 4.47 mm by altering the ALC from +30% to -30%. Additionally, as the ALC varied within this range, porosity decreased significantly from 3.98% to 0.28%. Overall, it is concluded that a lower value of ALC is recommended to improve bead penetration and reduce porosity in WAAM of Cu1897.