Effect of mechanical finishing on residual stresses and application behavior of wire arc additive manufactured aluminum components

Abstract

Wire arc additive manufacturing (WAAM) offers great potential for the production of automobile components due to its high material deposition rates, low costs and design freedom. In order to meet the requirements regarding surface integrity and lifetime, the parts must be mechanically finished after WAAM. However, the subsurface properties (e.g. residual stresses) and consequently the application behavior are significantly influenced by the mechanical finishing process. Thus, the effects of deep rolling and heat treatment on the residual stresses and lifetime of AlSi12 and AlSi10Mg parts produced by WAAM are investigated and the results are presented in this paper. Deep rolling was found to induce compressive residual stresses into additive manufactured AlSi12 and AlSi10Mg workpieces. Furthermore, deep rolling increased the lifetime of the WAAM components significantly. With a combination of a heat treatment and subsequent deep rolling AlSi10Mg workpieces were manufactured securely fail-safe.