Laser powder bed fusion of AlSi10Mg alloy: Numerical investigation on the temperature field evolution

Additive manufactured parts are subjected to intense thermal gradients and high temperature peaks which affect mechanical properties. Such thermal cycles can cause distortions, residual stresses and microstructural heterogeneities. Since the experimental measurement of the temperature field is extremely difficult, numerical simulation can be used to obtain a description of the phenomenon. Here, a three-dimensional computational model for the prediction of the temperature field during the laser powder bed fusion process on AlSi10Mg alloy was developed. Scan path, the geometry of the heat source and the progressive generation of the part during the process have been simulated with finite element method. This approach was used in a small scale representation, as the extremely fast temperature gradients, high scanning speeds and amount of thermal energy input make the phenomenon extremely localized. The predicted melt pool size, compared with microstructural analysis results on reference samples, was used to validate the computational model.