Adaptation of High-Chromium Refractory Alloy VZh159 (Haynes 282) to Selective Laser Melting

Refractory high-chromium alloy VZh159 (Haynes 282) obtained by the method of selective laser melting (SLM) is studied. C-curves of the precipitation of particles of a topologically closed-packed (tcp) phase are plotted for the temperature range of heat treatment and operation. It is shown that the content of the tcp-particles of unfavorable morphology increases and the ductility of the synthesized material during synthesis in a protective nitrogen environment decreases with increase in the chromium content in the alloy. The intensification of the precipitation of the particles of the tcp-phase is associated with decrease in the solubility of chromium in the solid solution at high temperatures due to elevation of the nitrogen content in the alloy. To stabilize the alloying system, the chromium content in alloy VZh159 is reduced by 1 wt.% with respect to the upper and lower alloying limits as compared to the deformable counterpart, which makes it possible to prevent marked lowering of the ductility of VZh159 fabricatedby SLM.