Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: This study investigates the influence of atmosphere conditions and laser processing parameters on the microstructure and phase evolution of Cu-Al-Ni shape memory alloys synthesized via laser powder bed fusion (LPBF). The experimental results demonstrated that applying a vacuum of 10-2 Pa significantly improved consolidation, avoiding oxide formation compared to atmospheric synthesis. Through a multi-stage thermal strategy, including pre-heating and remelting, we achieved a refined microstructure characterized by austenitic phase with embedded martensitic lamellae. XRD and SEM analyses revealed a heterogeneous microstructure, confirming effective in-situ alloying. Mechanical characterization via local microhardness testing highlighted significant variance in hardness, attributed to the interaction between the ductile copper matrix and harder intermetallic phases. Furthermore, molecular dynamics modelling was employed to correlate the observed structural features with the mechanical response of the material. These findings provide critical insights into optimizing LPBF parameters for producing high-performance Cu-Al-Ni components with tuneable functional properties.
Institution: Lviv University
Language: English
Subfield: Materials Chemistry
Field: Materials Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: diamond
Award: G4628101278
OpenAlex ID: W7214054173