Metal additive manufacturing is changing the way in which engineers and designers model the production of three-dimensional (3D) objects, with rapid growth seen in recent years. Laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) is the most used metal additive manufacturing technique, and it is based on the efficient interaction between a high-energy laser and a metal powder feedstock. To make LPBF more cost-efficient and environmentally friendly, it is of paramount importance to recycle (reuse) the unfused powder from a build job. However, since the laser–powder interaction involves complex physics phenomena and generates by-products which might affect the integrity of the feedstock and the final build part, a better understanding of the overall process should be attained. The present review paper is focused on the clarification of the interaction between laser and metal powder, with a strong focus on its side effects.

Friction stir welding (FSW) is the most widely used solid-state joining technique for light-weight plate and sheet products. This new joining technique is considered an energy-saving, environment friendly, and relatively versatile technology. FSW has been found to be a reliable joining technique in high-demand technology fields, such as high-strength aerospace aluminum and titanium alloys, and for other metallic alloys that are hard to weld by conventional fusion welding. Several studies accounted for the microstructural modifications induced by solid-state FSW, based on the resulting mechanical properties obtained at the FSW joints, such as tensile, bending, torsion, ductility and fatigue responses. In the last few years with the need and emerging urgency to widen the FSW application fields, broadening the possible alloy systems, and to optimize the resulting mechanical properties, this joining technique was further developed. In this respect, the present contribution focuses on two modified-FSW techniques and approaches applied to aluminum alloys plates. In a first case, an age-hardening AA6082 sheets were double side friction stir welded (DS-FSW). In a second case a non-age-hardening AA5754 sheet was FSW by an innovative approach in which welding pin was forced to slightly deviate away from the joining centreline (defined by authors as RT). In both the cases different pin heights were used, the sheets were subjected to heat treatments (peak hardening T6 for the AA6082, and annealing for the AA5754) and compared to the non-heat treated FSW conditions. Microstructural modifications were characterized by optical microscopy (OM). The mechanical properties were characterized both locally, by nanoindentation techniques, and globally, by tensile (yield, YT; ultimate, UT; and elongation, El) or forming limit curve (FLC) tests. Both the new approaches were directly compared to the conventional FSW techniques in terms of resulting microstructures and mechanical responses.

The austenitic stainless steels utilized in the production of osteosynthesis devices are susceptible to crevice corrosion. Several studies have compared the corrosive behavior of austenitic and duplex stainless steels (DSS), both of which are recognized as viable biomaterials for tissue engineering applications. All of the in vitro and in vivo studies on animals and clinical results reported to date indicate that austeno-ferritic duplex stainless steel can be recommended as a suitable alternative to ASTM F138 steel, since it is resistant to crevice corrosion in the human body and presents superior mechanical properties. The use of DSS for biomedical applications is still under discussion, mainly due to the lack of knowledge of its behavior in terms of device heating or induced movement when exposed to magnetic fields, a potentially harmful effect for the human body. As a breakthrough production technology, additive manufacturing (AM) has demonstrated significant benefits for the fabrication of metal devices with patient-specific geometry. Laser powder bed fusion has particularly been used to manufacture DSS-based components. A fine control of the processing conditions allows for an understanding of DSS microstructural evolution, which is essential for selecting processing parameters and estimating performance, including mechanical properties and corrosion resistance. Furthermore, scientific investigation is necessary for determining the relationships among material, process, and magnetic properties, in order to establish the underlying principles and critical responses. The purpose of this review is to highlight the key performances of DSS for biomedical applications and to point out the relevant role of advanced processing technologies such as additive manufacturing.

Metal additive manufacturing (AM) technologies can be classified according to the physical process involving the raw material as fusion-based and solid-state processes. The latter includes sintering-based technologies, which are aligned with conventional fabrication techniques, such as metal injection molding (MIM), and take advantage of the freeform fabrication of the initial green part. In the present work, 17-4PH stainless steel samples were fabricated by material extrusion, or rather bound metal deposition (BMD), a solid-state AM technology. The powder-based raw material was characterized together with samples fabricated using different angular infill strategies. By coupling different characterization technologies, it was possible to identify and classify major properties and defects of the raw material and the fabricated samples. In addition, microstructural modifications were found to be linked with the mesostructural defects typical of the BMD solid-state additive manufacturing technology applied to metals.

Metal additive manufacturing is now taking the lead over traditional manufacturing techniques in applications such as aerospace and biomedicine, which are characterized by low production volumes and high levels of customization. While fulfilling these requirements is the strength of metal additive manufacturing, respecting the tight tolerances typical of the mentioned applications is a harder task to accomplish. Powder bed fusion (PBF) is a class of additive manufacturing in which layers of metal powder are fused on top of each other by a high-energy beam (laser or electron beam) according to a computer-aided design (CAD) model. The quality of raw powders for PBF affects the mechanical properties of additively manufactured parts strongly, and therefore it is crucial to avoid the presence of any source of contamination, particularly cross-contamination. In this study, the identification and quantification of cross-contamination in powders of Ti-6Al-4V and maraging steel was performed using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) techniques. Experimental results showed an overall good reliability of the developed method, opening the way for applications in machine learning environments.

Graded lattice scaffolds based on rhombic dodecahedral (RD) elementary unit cell geometry were manufactured in 316L stainless steel (SS) by laser powder bed fusion (LPBF). Two different strategies based on varying strut thickness layer-by-layer in the building direction were adopted to obtain the graded scaffolds: a) decreasing strut size from core to edge to produce the dense-in (DI) structure and b) increasing strut size in the same direction to produce the dense-out (DO) structure. Both graded structures (DI and DO) were constructed with specular symmetry with respect to the central horizontal axis. Structural, mechanical, and biological characterizations were carried out to evaluate feasibility of designing appropriate biomechanical performances of graded scaffolds in the perspective of bone tissue regeneration. Results showed that mechanical behavior is governed by graded geometry, while printing parameters influence structural properties of the material such as density, textures, and crystallographic phases. The predominant failure mechanism in graded structures initiates in correspondence of thinner struts, due to high stress concentrations on strut junctions. Biological tests evidenced better proliferation of cells in the DO graded scaffold, which in turn exhibits mechanical properties close to cortical bone. The combined control of grading strategy, printing parameters and elementary unit cell geometry can enable implementing scaffolds with improved biomechanical performances for bone tissue regeneration.