An Experimental Analysis to Determine the Load-Bearing Capacity of 3D Printed Metals

Reverse engineering is conducted based on the analysis of an already existing product. The results of such an analysis can be used to improve the functioning of the product or develop new organizational, economic, information technology, and other solutions that increase the efficiency of the entire business system, in particular 3D printed products. Therefore, the main aim of this research is to focus on evaluation of the load-bearing capacity of already existing 3D printed metals in order to see their suitability for the intended application and to obtain their relevant mechanical properties. To this end, 3D printed metallic bars with almost square cross-sections were acquired from an external company in China without any known processing parameters, apart from the assumption that specimens No. 1–3 are printed horizontally, and specimens No. 4–7 are printed vertically. Various experiments were conducted to study microstructural characteristics and mechanical properties of 3D printed metals. It was observed that specimens No. 1–6, were almost similar in hardness, while specimen No. 7 was reduced by about 4.5% due to the uneven surface. The average value of hardness for the specimens was found to be approximately 450 HV, whereas the load-extension graphs assessed prior point towards the conclusion that the specimens’ fractured in a brittle status, is due to the lack of plastic deformation. For different specimens of the 3D printed materials, the main defects were identified, namely, lack of fusion and porosity are directly responsible for the cracks and layer delamination, prevalent in SLM printed metals. An extensive presence of cracks and layer delamination prove that the printing of these metallic bars was completed in a quick and inaccurate manner, which led to higher percentages of lack of fusion due to either low laser power, high scan speed, or the wrong scan strategy.