Selective laser sintering and cladding of single‐component metal powders

Abstract

A comparison of selective laser sintering (SLS) and selective laser cladding (SLC) methods is presented. Loose single‐component, Ni‐alloy powder was used in this study. The powder feeding system formed the flow of powder particles directed into the zone of laser spot. The particles were deposited directly onto a substrate or onto the top of a pedestal. The powders were treated with a CW‐ Nd:YAG laser ( λ =1.06 μ m). The beam was motionless relative to the powder bed. As a result, the samples of sintered or remelted powders were built up as the vertical rods. The geometrical characteristics, structure and mechanical properties of samples were investigated.