MANUFACTURING AND CHARACTERIZATON OF WAAM-BASED BIMETALLIC CUTTING TOOL

Wire-arc additive manufacturing (WAAM) is a promising method to produce many functional components in different industries. In this method, the welding wires from the feedstock are melted by arc discharge and deposited layer by layer. Other welding wires having different chemical compositions can also be added to the top of the previously deposited layer by replacing the feed wire from the stock to produce bimetallic components. This study investigated the feasibility of using robotic wire arc additive manufacturing technology to produce a bimetallic cutting tool. The bimetallic cutting tool was produced by depositing MSG 6 GZ-60 hard-facing welding wire on top of the austenitic stainless-steel wall produced with ER 316LSi solid wire. The cutting-based equipment requires an increased abrasion resistance with the combination of ductility to provide adequate tool life and performance. Thus, detailed microstructural analysis and hardness tests were conducted to understand the general microstructural characteristic of the manufactured cutting tool, including interfaces between two different materials.