Additive Manufacturing of Steels and Stainless Steels

Abstract

This article provides a general overview of additively manufactured steels and focuses on specific challenges and opportunities associated with additive manufacturing (AM) stainless steels. It briefly reviews the classification of the different types of steels, the most common AM processes used for steel, and available powder feedstock characteristics. The article emphasizes the characteristics of the as-built microstructure, including porosity, inclusions, and residual stresses. It also reviews the material properties of AM steel parts, including hardness, tensile strength, and fatigue strength, as well as environmental properties with respect to corrosion resistance, highlighting the importance of postbuild thermal processing.