Carbon nanotube (CNT)-AlSi10Mg composites were fabricated by selective laser melting (SLM). The influence of CNTs on the density, microstructure, and strength of SLM CNT-AlSi10Mg composites was investigated. The addition of CNTs over 0.1 wt-% significantly damaged the density due to the high surface energy of the CNTs. The network Si eutectic had no significant difference in either the SLM AlSi10Mg alloy or the CNT-AlSi10Mg composite. Reserved CNTs with a short scale were observed in the SLM CNT(0.5 wt-%)-AlSi10Mg composite. The ultimate tensile strength of the 0.05 wt-% CNT-AlSi10Mg composite was 441.2 ± 0.9 MPa, which was higher than that of AlSi10Mg alloy. The grain boundary strengthening played an important role in the reinforcement of CNT-AlSi10Mg composite because of the refined grain.

In this paper, single-layer and bulk 316 L selective laser melting (SLM) experiments were conducted, fine submicron-scale geometric symmetrical cellular (hexagonal, pentagonal and square), elongated cellular and bands solidification morphologies were found in the laser-melt top surface. Meanwhile, morphological developed sub-grain patterns with quasi-hexagonal cellular, elongated cellular and bands structures (size ~1 μm) coexisting inside one single macro-solidified grain were also identified. This demonstrated the transitions from quasi-hexagonal-cells to elongated cells/bands, and transitions reverse, occurred in the whole bulk under some circumstances during SLM. Based on the experimental realities, these morphologies are formed by the local convection and Bénard instabilities in front of the solid/liquid interface (so-called mushy zones) affected by intricate temperature and surface tension gradients. Quasi-hexagonal cellular convective fields are then superimposed on macro-grain solidification to form the sub-grain patterns and micro-segregations. This explanation seems reasonable and is unifying as it can be expanded to other eutectic alloys with face center cubic (FCC) prevenient phase prepared by SLM, e.g., the Al-Si and Co-Cr-Mo systems.