Parametric Study of Surface Roughness in Laser Powder Bed Fusion of Ti-6Al-4V

  • Huynh, Thanh-Liem (Royal Military College of Canada)
  • Vu, Viet-Hung (Royal Military College of Canada)

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This paper reports an experimental investigation of the surface roughness of Ti-6Al-4V components fabricated by laser powder bed fusion. A process window is defined and used to design an experimental plan. Test coupons were produced on a OneClick system at multiple conditions spanning the process window. Surface roughness measurements were performed using a 4D Keyence digital microscope and evaluated in accordance with ASTM standards. A parametric analysis, together with comparisons to existing literature, identifies an appropriate cutoff value of 0.8 and a magnification of 300× for Ra measurements. The results indicate that surface roughness is more strongly influenced by scanning speed than by laser power. The as-built surface roughness remains relatively stable for scanning speeds between 600 and 1800 mm/s, yielding acceptable Ra values in the range of 1.0 to 1.5.