Influence of carbon on the rheology and additive manufacturability of Ti-6Al-4V powders

The focus of this work was to determine the effect of carbon blending on powder-part properties of titanium alloy Ti-6Al-4V. To assess this, carbon blends of both grade 5 and grade 23 from 0.1-1.0 wt% C were prepared. Part printability using laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) was assessed by measuring t...

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Main Authors: Apratim Chakraborty, Manvinder Lalh, Étienne Martin, Heidar Karimialavijeh, Adam Bejarano, Andrew Wessman, Yu Zou, Mahdi Habibnejad-Korayem
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2025-05-01
Series:Materials & Design
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Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0264127525002539
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author Apratim Chakraborty
Manvinder Lalh
Étienne Martin
Heidar Karimialavijeh
Adam Bejarano
Andrew Wessman
Yu Zou
Mahdi Habibnejad-Korayem
author_facet Apratim Chakraborty
Manvinder Lalh
Étienne Martin
Heidar Karimialavijeh
Adam Bejarano
Andrew Wessman
Yu Zou
Mahdi Habibnejad-Korayem
author_sort Apratim Chakraborty
collection DOAJ
description The focus of this work was to determine the effect of carbon blending on powder-part properties of titanium alloy Ti-6Al-4V. To assess this, carbon blends of both grade 5 and grade 23 from 0.1-1.0 wt% C were prepared. Part printability using laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) was assessed by measuring the segregation, flowability, rheology, and spreadability of the powder. Blend quality was assessed chemically and visually via computed tomography and scanning electron microscopy. Carbon blends above 0.25 wt% C produced significant segregation of carbon particles. Agglomerated carbon segregates acted as barriers to flow causing the reduction in dynamic flow by 40–60% compared to the virgin powders. High carbon contents also limited powder spreadability by promoting large streaks during powder spreading. Below 0.25 wt% C, the deleterious effects of segregation, flowability, and spreadability were reduced and the powder characteristics were comparable to the processable virgin powders. Printed parts exhibited very small effect of carbon blending on the density and micro-hardness of the material. The grade 23 powder is more suitable for carbon blending and offers the highest part densities and lowest variation in material hardness. This is attributed to lesser carbon agglomeration, better powder flow, and fewer interstitial elements.
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spelling doaj-art-1e4ea3b6f13c4696bf468b3293dc2aec2025-08-20T02:38:29ZengElsevierMaterials & Design0264-12752025-05-0125311383310.1016/j.matdes.2025.113833Influence of carbon on the rheology and additive manufacturability of Ti-6Al-4V powdersApratim Chakraborty0Manvinder Lalh1Étienne Martin2Heidar Karimialavijeh3Adam Bejarano4Andrew Wessman5Yu Zou6Mahdi Habibnejad-Korayem7Polytechnique Montréal, 2500 Chemin de Polytechnique, Montréal, QC H3T 1J4, CanaadaDepartment of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 3E4, CanadaPolytechnique Montréal, 2500 Chemin de Polytechnique, Montréal, QC H3T 1J4, CanaadaPolytechnique Montréal, 2500 Chemin de Polytechnique, Montréal, QC H3T 1J4, CanaadaUniversity of Arizona, 1235 E. James E. Rogers Way, Tucson, AZ 85721-0012, United StatesUniversity of Arizona, 1235 E. James E. Rogers Way, Tucson, AZ 85721-0012, United StatesDepartment of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 3E4, CanadaAP&C Advanced Powders and Coatings, a Colibrium Additive Company, St. Eustache, Quebec, Canada; Corresponding author.The focus of this work was to determine the effect of carbon blending on powder-part properties of titanium alloy Ti-6Al-4V. To assess this, carbon blends of both grade 5 and grade 23 from 0.1-1.0 wt% C were prepared. Part printability using laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) was assessed by measuring the segregation, flowability, rheology, and spreadability of the powder. Blend quality was assessed chemically and visually via computed tomography and scanning electron microscopy. Carbon blends above 0.25 wt% C produced significant segregation of carbon particles. Agglomerated carbon segregates acted as barriers to flow causing the reduction in dynamic flow by 40–60% compared to the virgin powders. High carbon contents also limited powder spreadability by promoting large streaks during powder spreading. Below 0.25 wt% C, the deleterious effects of segregation, flowability, and spreadability were reduced and the powder characteristics were comparable to the processable virgin powders. Printed parts exhibited very small effect of carbon blending on the density and micro-hardness of the material. The grade 23 powder is more suitable for carbon blending and offers the highest part densities and lowest variation in material hardness. This is attributed to lesser carbon agglomeration, better powder flow, and fewer interstitial elements.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0264127525002539Laser powder bed fusionTi-6Al-4VFlowabilityPrintabilityBlending
spellingShingle Apratim Chakraborty
Manvinder Lalh
Étienne Martin
Heidar Karimialavijeh
Adam Bejarano
Andrew Wessman
Yu Zou
Mahdi Habibnejad-Korayem
Influence of carbon on the rheology and additive manufacturability of Ti-6Al-4V powders
Materials & Design
Laser powder bed fusion
Ti-6Al-4V
Flowability
Printability
Blending
title Influence of carbon on the rheology and additive manufacturability of Ti-6Al-4V powders
title_full Influence of carbon on the rheology and additive manufacturability of Ti-6Al-4V powders
title_fullStr Influence of carbon on the rheology and additive manufacturability of Ti-6Al-4V powders
title_full_unstemmed Influence of carbon on the rheology and additive manufacturability of Ti-6Al-4V powders
title_short Influence of carbon on the rheology and additive manufacturability of Ti-6Al-4V powders
title_sort influence of carbon on the rheology and additive manufacturability of ti 6al 4v powders
topic Laser powder bed fusion
Ti-6Al-4V
Flowability
Printability
Blending
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0264127525002539
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