Thickness-Dependent Microstructure in Additively Manufactured Stainless Steel

Widespread industrial adoption of metal additive manufacturing (AM) requires an in-depth understanding of microstructural evolution during AM. In this study, the effect of process parameters and feature thickness on the microstructures of 316L stainless steel components fabricated by laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) was examined. A standard benchmark geometry developed by the National Institute of Standards and Technology, which contained walls of 0.5, 2.5 and 5.0 mm in thickness, was used. Optical microscopy, finite element analysis, scanning electron microscopy and electron backscatter diffraction revealed dramatic microstructural differences in features of different thickness within the same component. The feature thickness influenced the cooling rate, which in turn impacted the melt pool size, solidification microstructure, grain morphology and density of geometrically necessary dislocations. The relationship between feature size and grain morphology was dependent on the energy input used during LPBF. Such behavior suggested that local manipulation of LPBF process parameters can be employed to achieve microstructural homogeneity within the as-printed stainless steel components.