The heat treatment influence on the structure and mechanical properties of Ti6Al4V alloy manufactured by SLM technology

Titanium alloy can be processed via advanced powder manufacturing routes such as selective laser melting (SLM). This field is receiving increased attention from various manufacturing sectors including medical device sectors. These advanced manufacturing techniques associated advantages include: design flexibility, reduced production cost, reduced waste, and the opportunity to more easily manufacture complex or custom-shaped implants. Unfortunately, this production technique is characterized by high temperature gradients, which results in the build-up of thermal stresses. This is the reason why heat treatments have to be used. In this research, the effect of several heat treatments on the microstructure and mechanical properties of Ti6Al4V alloy processed by SLM are studied.