UC Davis

One of the primary barriers for adoption of additive manufacturing (AM) has been the uncertainty in the performance of AM parts due to residual stresses/strains. The rapid heating and cooling rates from the thermal history of the laser melting process result in high residual stresses/strains that produce significant part distortion. Efforts to mitigate residual stresses using post-process heat treatments can significantly impact the microstructures of the AM part which may lead to further issues. Therefore, the ability to accurately predict the residual stresses in as-built AM parts is crucial, and rigorous benchmark measurements are needed to validate such predictions. To fill this need, the AM-Bench aims to provide high-fidelity residual stress and strain benchmark measurements in well-characterized AM bridge-shaped parts. The measurements reported here are part of the residual elastic strain benchmark challenge CHAL-AMB2018-01-RS. Residual strains and stresses in this work were measured using neutron diffraction, synchrotron X-ray diffraction, and the contour method. Part deflection measurements were performed using a coordinate measurement machine after the part was partially separated from the build plate. These independently measured results show a high degree of agreement between the different techniques.